The Wall Street Journal

BuzzFeed set to go public through SPAC merger

BuzzFeed’s deal would generate capital to pursue additional acquisitions.

Associated Press

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BuzzFeed Inc. is close to a deal to go public through a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company, according to people familiar with the situation, part of a plan to consolidate other players in digital media.

BuzzFeed founder and Chief Executive Officer Jonah Peretti could announce a deal with 890 5th Avenue Partners Inc.  ENFA, -0.20%  — a blank-check company named after the headquarters of Marvel’s Avengers superheroes and founded by investor Adam Rothstein — as early as this week, the people said.

The merger deal would generate capital to pursue additional acquisitions, including Complex Networks, a digital publisher that specializes in streetwear, music and pop culture. BuzzFeed is vying for greater scale to better compete for online ad dollars with tech giants such as Alphabet Inc.’s GOOGL, -0.17%   GOOG, -0.42% Google, Amazon. com Inc. AMZN, -0.05% and Facebook Inc. FB, +0.46%.

An expanded version of this report appears on WSJ.com.

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