BigRep SE to Liquidate After SPAC Listing Fails to Meet Projections
BigRep SE, a parent company in the additive manufacturing sector, has agreed to sell its operating subsidiary and wind down its publicly listed entity following a failed SPAC merger and subsequent financial difficulties.
BigRep SE, the parent company of BigRep GmbH, has announced it will sell its entire stake in the operating subsidiary to three existing holding companies: De Krassny GmbH, Koehler Invest GmbH, and HAGE Holding GmbH. These companies were already part of BigRep SE’s shareholder and creditor structure.
The move follows BigRep SE's listing on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (FSE) on July 31, 2024, through a reverse merger with SMG Technology Acceleration SE, a SPAC. The combined entity, trading under the ticker B1GR, saw its share price drop significantly from an initial €11.20 to €5.00 by August 28, 2024.
This listing was intended to fuel an acquisition-led growth strategy, which began in late 2023 with the acquisition of HAGE3D. The company aimed to become a European additive manufacturing leader through further acquisitions, funded by public market access. However, this strategy did not yield the projected financial results.
Revenue decreased from €11.2 million in 2023 to €6.3 million in 2024, while adjusted EBITDA worsened from -€5.0 million to -€11.8 million in the same period. By 2025, BigRep SE entered a formal reorganization process, with existing shareholders injecting €3.2 million and another entity repaying a €1.8 million loan to provide liquidity.
Despite these efforts, BigRep SE's management and supervisory boards approved the sale of all shares in BigRep GmbH to the same three firms on June 29, 2026. The sale price will be determined by an independent valuation. Following the sale, BigRep SE intends to enter voluntary liquidation under Luxembourg law and delist from the FSE.
BigRep's liquidation highlights the challenges faced by additive manufacturing companies that pursued SPAC listings. The strategy aimed for rapid growth through acquisition, but financial performance did not align with public market expectations. This situation mirrors other SPAC-listed AM firms like Desktop Metal and Markforged, whose operating assets retained value even as their public entities struggled, underscoring the difficulties in matching AM's developmental pace with aggressive growth valuations.
Edited by the news editor with AI from the original report — please refer to the original source.