Simon Property Group is the latest commercial real estate company to enter the SPAC frenzy with the formation of a $300 million blank check company targeting innovative retail companies. 

Simon Property Group Acquisition has filed paperwork with the Securities & Exchange Commission to raise up to $300 million in an initial public offering by offering 30 million units—which each will consist of one share of common stock and one-fourth of a warrant exercisable at $11.50—at a price of $10 per unit.  It has the potential to reach a $345 million valuation if underwriter Goldman Sachs elects to exercise options on an additional 4.5 million units. 

A SPAC, also known as a special purpose acquisition company or blank check company, is a publicly-traded shell company formed to pursue private sector deals by raising cash in an IPO and then seeking acquisition targets. The acquired companies then use the SPAC to sell shares publicly, a process that bypasses the typical initial public offering framework.