PowerUp Acquisition Corp. (PWUP)

PowerUp Acquisition Corp. was a special purpose acquisition company, a shell with no operations that raised money from the public in order to merge with a private business. It priced its initial public offering on February 17, 2022, selling 25 million units at $10.00 each on Nasdaq for $250 million. Each unit held one Class A share and half of a warrant exercisable at $11.50. The units traded as PWUPU, and the shares and warrants later traded separately as PWUP and PWUPW.

The SPAC was originally aimed at interactive media, video games, sports and entertainment. Its leadership included Jack Tretton, the former head of Sony Computer Entertainment America, as chief executive, and Bruce Hack, a former Vivendi Games chief executive, as executive chairman. Like many SPACs from the 2021 and 2022 boom, it struggled to complete a deal before its deadline. In May 2023 shareholders approved an extension, and about 26.9 million shares were redeemed for cash at roughly $10.55 each.

In mid-2023 the original sponsor agreed to sell its stake to a new group, and the management team changed. The SPAC then agreed to merge with Visiox Pharmaceuticals, an ophthalmology company, but that agreement was terminated in July 2024. Shortly afterward, PowerUp signed a letter of intent with Aspire Biopharma, and a further extension in 2024 led to additional redemptions that left only a small amount of cash in the trust account.

Aspire Biopharma, founded in 2021 and based in Humacao, Puerto Rico, develops sublingual delivery technology for approved drugs and supplements. Its lead product candidate is a high-dose aspirin designed to dissolve under the tongue for fast absorption, intended for suspected heart attacks and pain. The company is at an early stage and had not yet received regulatory approval for its products at the time of the merger.

PowerUp shareholders approved the business combination on January 31, 2025, and the transaction closed on February 17, 2025. The SPAC was renamed Aspire Biopharma Holdings, Inc., and its common stock began trading on the Nasdaq Global Market under the symbol ASBP on February 20, 2025, with warrants trading as ASBPW on the Nasdaq Capital Market. Former PWUP shares became shares of the new company, so investors who held through the deal now own a stake in the drug delivery business.