Navios Maritime Acquisition registers for IPO

Greek drybulk shipper Navios Maritime Holdings Inc. said Tuesday it is sponsoring an initial public offering of Navios Maritime Acquisition Corp., a special purpose acquisition company formed to acquire marine transportation and logistics assets or businesses.

On Tuesday, Navios Acquisition registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission for an initial public offering of 22 million units at an offering price of $10 apiece. Each unit consists of one share of common stock and one warrant that entitles the holder to purchase one share of common stock for $7.

The net proceeds of the offering will be held in trust pending the completion of an acquisition. If a deal is not completed within 24 months, the proceeds will be liquidated and distributed to shareholders.

When the IPO closes, Navios Holdings has agreed to invest $7.6 million in a private placement of warrants. Navios Holdings expects to own about 19 percent of Navios Acquisition's common shares after the IPO.

JP Morgan Securities and Deutsche Bank Securities are serving as the IPO's lead underwriters. S. Goldman Advisors is also backing the offering. The underwriters have an option to buy up to 3.3 million additional units to cover any overallotments.

Navios Acquisition plans to list its units, stock and warrants on the New York Stock Exchange.

Shares of Navios fell 37 cents, or 3.6 percent, to $9.82 in midday trading.