Vancouver quantum computing startup D-Wave is now publicly listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
D-Wave made its debut Monday under the symbol ‘QBTS’ after announcing last week that it had completed its business combination with DPCM Capital Inc.
The company originally announced its intention for a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) listing in February.
D-Wave had hoped the deal would bring in $340 million USD in gross proceeds, however, SEC filings show that the company’s shareholders redeemed just more than $291 million USD worth of shares at a price of $10.01 USD per share. As reported by The Globe and Mail, the deal also included a separate $40 million USD commitment from new and old investors, including Canadian pension fund PSP Investments, Japan’s NEC Corporation, Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Yorkville Advisors, and Aegis Group Partners.
D-Wave plans to use the proceeds from the transaction to further accelerate its delivery of in-production quantum applications for blue-chip customers, and to build on the 200-plus US patents that have been granted to D-Wave since its founding. Founded in 1999, D-Wave is a longtime staple of the Canadian tech ecosystem and is known as the first startup to offer a commercially available quantum computer.
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D-Wave received $40 million in financing in 2021 from the federal government to support the $120 million development of quantum computer hardware and software systems.
The company’s systems are used by some of the world’s most advanced organizations, including investor NEC Corporation, Volkswagen, DENSO, Lockheed Martin, Forschungszentrum Jülich, University of Southern California, and Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Despite its long history, which saw more than $376.8 million raised before going public, D-Wave has struggled to become a sustainable company. The Globe reported in 2020 that the company had secured just $75 million USD in customer contracts over its lifespan. D-Wave reportedly raised $40 million in financing in 2020 as part of a capital restructuring that cut D-Wave’s valuation to less than $213.5 million from $565.1 million. This led to long-time investors, such as the venture arm of the US Central Intelligence Agency and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, seeing their stakes fall significantly.
Current CEO Alan Baratz replaced long-time D-Wave CEO Vern Brownell in 2020, reportedly stepping in to speed up the company’s commercialization efforts. The company also made changes to other top executives and long-time board members.
SEC filings show that D-Wave had $6.3 million USD in revenue in 2021 and $5.2 million in 2020.
In its NYSE debut, D-Wave’s shares went from $8.98 USD at market open and peaked at just more than $12 USD before closing at $10 USD.