Trading Card Company Topps Announces SPAC Deal, Continued NFT Expansion

One of the most iconic companies in the sports trading card world is going public once again with a SPAC deal.

The SPAC Deal: Topps, an 80-year-old trading card company, announced Tuesday a merger with Mudrick Capital Acquisition Corporation II MUDS.

Michael Eisner serves as the Chairman of Topps and will stay in his current role and maintain his ownership stake in the new company. Eisner is the former CEO of the Walt Disney Co DIS.

Current shareholders of Mudrick Capital Acquisition Corporation II will own 28% of the company after the merger. Shares will trade as TOPP on the Nasdaq.

About Topps: Best known for its trading cards, Topps is one of the oldest brands in the industry.

Topps has licensing partnerships with Major League Baseball, the National Hockey League, several soccer leagues, Formula One, World Wrestling Entertainment Inc WWE and Disney.

Topps does not have current deals with the NFL or NBA, which could be something to watch in the future. Milwaukee Bucks owner Marc Lasry is joining the Board of Directors for Topps after the merger.

Along with physical and digital trading cards, Topps also has a digital gift card business and a confections business segment. The confections business includes brands like Bazooka and Ring Pop.

Related Link: Is Funko The Next Big NFT Winner?

Growth Ahead: Topps has been shifting part of its business model to digital with offerings like Topps Now. Digital cards in the Topps Now series feature recent moments like a player’s first home run.

Topps Now also features historical non-sports moments. A Topps Now digital card featuring Bernie Sanders in his mittens at Joe Biden’s inauguration sold over 100,000 units.

Topps has also pushed into the non-fungible token market with several offerings since last year. Topps released Garbage Pail Kids NFTs and Godzilla NFTs to capitalize on the growth of NFTs and its intellectual property.

In 2020, Topps signed a partnership with WAX, a decentralized video game and entertainment network that helps users create, buy, sell and trade NFTs.

Topps highlighted it has a strong spring/summer 2021 release pipeline of NFTs coming.

Financials: Topps reported revenue of $567 million in fiscal 2020, a year-over-year increase of 23%. EBITDA was $92 million in fiscal 2020.

In 2020, revenue was split as 55% physical, 6% digital, 4% gift cards and 35% confections. E-commerce made up 30% of Topps business.

The company is estimating revenue to hit $692 million in fiscal 2021 and $777 million in fiscal 2022.

MUDS Price Action: Shares of Mudrick Capital Acquisition Corporation II are up 11.6% to $11.07.