Shares of American Express Co. AXP, -0.53% rose 0.8% in premarket trading Friday, after American Express Global Business Travel (GBT), which is 50% owned by AmEx, confirmed that it will go public through a merger with special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Apollo Strategic Growth Capital APSG, +0.91% in a deal that values the combined company at $5.3 billion. The Wall Street Journal had previously reported that a deal was near. The merger will provide $1.2 billion in gross proceeds, including $335 million in private investment in public equity (PIPE) from investors including Zoom Video Communications Inc. ZM, -4.08%, Sabre Corp. SABR, -3.34% and Apollo Global Management Inc. APO, -2.35%. After the deal closes, which is expected to occur in the first half of 2022, the combined company will be named Global Business Travel Group Inc. and is expected to be the world’s largest publicly traded business-to-business travel platform. The company is expected to list on the NYSE under the ticker symbol “GBTG.” “We expect that becoming a listed company will give us the additional investment capacity to strengthen our commitment to providing unrivaled value, choice and experiences to our customers and partners,” said GBT Chief Executive Paul Abbott. American Express’ stock has slipped 1.6% over the past three months, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -0.17% has lost 2.1%.
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