A North Texas-based online gun retailer that plans to go public later this summer has appointed a Trump family member as an advisor to the company.
Coppell-based GrabAGun, which operates as Metroplex Trading Company LLC, made the announcement on January 6.
The company plans to merge with the special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), Colombier Acquisition Corp. II, in a deal valued at $150 million.
Under the merger, the new company, GrabAGun Digital Holdings Inc., would trade under the ticker ‘PEW’ on the New York Stock Exchange.
Donald Trump Jr., appointed as an advisor to GrabAGun, will become a shareholder in the new venture once the deal closes.
“It’s truly important to me to only support and invest in companies that actually share my pro-American values, which is exactly why I’m so excited to announce our partnership with GrabAGun. Much like Truth Social, PublicSquare and Rumble have led the charge to protect the First Amendment, GrabAGun will do the same for the Second Amendment. In an age where our right to bear arms is under constant attack from anti-gun politicians and woke corporations, GrabAGun has developed a powerful, scalable platform that offers unmatched selection and service to Americans who wish to legally buy and own a firearm,” Trump Jr. said in a statement.
Like GrabAGun, Rumble joined public markets via a SPAC when it merged with CF Acquisition IV in September 2022. However, the use of SPACs to bring companies public has dipped since peaking in 2020 and 2021.
In 2021, there were 613 SPAC initial public offerings. By 2022, that number shrank to 86. Last year, only 57 SPAC IPOs hit the market.
Current equity holders of GrabAGun are slated to receive $100 million in stock and $50 million in cash once the new entity goes public.
“Backed by the exceptional leadership of Colombier II, I believe that CEO Marc Nemati and his team will revolutionize this industry, and I look forward to partnering with them and leveraging our combined resources to protect our fundamental rights, while driving significant growth for the company, as we move into 2025,” Trump Jr. said.