LI-CYCLE LISTED
Li-Cycle is raising funds for global expansion by going public on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in a deal that values the battery recycler at US$1.7 billion. The five-year-old private company has unveiled plans to merge with Peridot Acquisition Corp., an NYSE-listed special acquisition corporation (SPAC). If approved by shareholders in both companies, the transaction will bring US$615-million into Li-Cycle. The business combination includes a pre-money equity valuation for Li-Cycle of $975 million and, when combined with the transaction proceeds, represents a combined company pro-forma equity value of $1.67 billion. Upon closing, the combined company will be renamed Li-Cycle Holdings Corp. and will be listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the new ticker symbol “LICY.”
CALIBRATION CONNECTION
asTech has acquired adasThink in what feels like a “natural fit,” for the Canadian startup, said adasThink co-founder Nick Dominato. “There are some amazing synergies that adasThink can have with asTech,” Dominato told Collision Repair. “asTech is a leader when it comes to OEM diagnostics and calibrations, and that aligns with our mission to identify OEM required ADAS calibrations and the required documentation. It was a natural fit. We’re incredibly proud of what we’ve done in this short time. We can’t wait to see where the support of asTech’s its resources, knowledge and technology will bring us.”
CASH, CREDIT OR CRYPTO?
HGreg auto group is now accepting cryptocurrency for payment on new or used vehicles. The company said the move was made to meet its “desire to constantly evolve and improve [its] customers’ shopping experience.” Cryptocurrencies are not tied to banks or the government and users can spend money anonymously. According to recent reports from Canada’s Associated Press, digital currency has become so popular that more than 300,000 transactions occur in the average day. The most highly-traded cryptocurrency—and the highest valued—is Bitcoin, which hit a record-high Feb. 16 with a single unit trading at US$50,600
PEAKS AND VALLEYS
How’s your 2021 going so far? According to the latest report from Desrosiers Automotive Consultants Inc. (DAC), that may depend on what province you live in, as sales numbers for the light vehicle market are scattered across the board in Canada, with figures ranging drastically from province-to-province. With the experience of the COVID-19 pandemic varying significantly based on the region in which you live, so too do the results found in this latest report from DAC which shows both notable spikes and declines in light vehicle sales on a provincial level. The report shows an estimated 39.1 percent decline in sales in January for Quebec, who faced strict lockdown restrictions and curfews throughout that time. Conversely, Newfoundland experienced a 24 percent jump in sales in the first month of 2021, “albeit at a lower and in turn more volatile volume,” according to the report. Fellow east coast provinces, PEI and Nova Scotia also reported sales increases of 11.9 and 5.2 percent, respectively. Across the country, British Columbia saw a 4.5 percent climb and Alberta a 9.4 percent fall in sales volume. Ontario, which accounted for over half of the sales decrease in 2020, saw its sales fall 19.7 percent in January. Overall, the light vehicle market is down 17.4 percent to an estimated 90,890 units sold, as compared to 109,988 units in January 2020.
UH-UH, UBER
Many Canadian Uber drivers and couriers are rejecting Uber’s proposal unveiled last week, which aimed to ease tensions between Uber’s independent contractors and the ride-sharing/food delivery giant. The proposal for the potential solution to tensions between the company and its contracted workers, Flexible Work+, would have asked that provinces mandate benefit funds for app-based gig employers to provide perks and safety training to employees, while still maintaining the freedom to determine their own working hours. Uber workers are currently classified as independent contractors who are not required to be given benefits or minimum wage like employees would be under provincial laws. According to these workers, the so-called solution “doesn’t address any of the real issues that workers have been talking about,” which include living wages, sick pay and more stability for workers. Uber has countered the requests by arguing that workers want the flexibility to choose when, where and how often they work and don’t want to be tied to formal schedules that could come with traditional employment.
