ChampionsGate Acquisition

General Information
Business:

(Incorporated in the Cayman Islands)

We are a newly organized blank check company or special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC). We have not selected a sector or a geographic region o f interest.

Bala Padmakumar, our CEO, chairman and director, is a broad-based entrepreneur and technologist with a strong background in strategic partnerships, product and business development, technology and operations, private equity, and venture capital environments. Mr. Padmakumar has broad experience leading special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs), including serving as Chairman and board member of Four Leaf Acquisition Corporation (Nasdaq: FORL), a SPAC in search of target business, since July 2022, and serving as CEO, Chairman and board member of Monterey Capital Acquisition Corporation (Nasdaq: MCAC), from September 2021 until the closing of its business combination with ConnectM Technology Solutions, Inc. (“ConnectM”), a clean energy solution provider, in July 2024. Since July 2024, he has served as Vice Chairman, Corporate Development for ConnectM (Nasdaq: CNTM). In addition, since August 2020, Mr. Padmakumar has been a partner at Advantary LLC, where he specializes in business development and advises on strategic matters. From July 2016 to December 2021, Mr. Padmakumar also advised on deal flow and provided operational support to portfolio companies for a fund set up to support SK Telecom Co., Ltd.’s strategic interests. From 2011 to October 2020, Mr. Padmakumar was the Chief Executive Officer at Amperics, Inc., a developer and vendor of high energy density ultracap hybrid storage systems. Mr. Padmakumar also has extensive experience in the clean energy sectors, having been an advisor to Lionrock Batteries Ltd., which creates flexible batteries and high performance separator technology since 2019, an advisor to the board and CEO of Hyperscale Data Center Company, a company focused on energy usage efficiency in hyperscale data centers from 2018 to 2020, and an advisor to the chairman of Advanced Systems Automation Limited in Singapore, where he advised on issues surrounding urban transportation, High Energy Density Li Ion battery (NMC technology) and 3D printing technology from 2017 to 2019. Mr. Padmakumar also has broad experience advising on capital raising and corporate strategy, serving as a mentor to OneValley Inc., a global entrepreneurship platform for individuals, startups, and corporations seeking innovation and accelerated growth, and as an advisor to several early stage companies from audio technologies to SaaS products. Mr. Padmakumar holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Technology from the University of Madras in Chemical Engineering and a Master of Science Degree in Chemical Engineering from Stanford University.

We believe that Mr. Padmakumar’s experience leading SPACs and background in financial investment makes him well suited to serve as a member of our board of directors.

Evan M. Graj, CFO and director, is an experienced entrepreneur, investor and operator in the technology and digital retail spaces. Currently, Mr. Graj serves as CEO of Fusion AI, a Singapore startup company he founded in September 2023 to deliver AI-powered marketing solutions. He is also a director nominee of Shepherd Ave Capital Acquisition Corporation, a Cayman Islands SPAC seeking Nasdaq listing. Before founding Fusion AI, Mr. Graj has accumulated for more than a decade of experience in the e-commerce space. From July 2022 to August 2023, he served as Chief Strategy Officer of DFI Retail Group (LSE: DFIB), a major Southeast and East Asia retailer; from January 2020 to April 2022, he served as Executive Vice President of NTUC Enterprise Co-operative Limited, the holding company for a group of social enterprises supported by the National Trade Union Congress (NTUC), one of Singapore’s largest trade unions; from September 2018 to November 2019, he served as Australia country manager for Amazon Prime, the paid membership program for the global e-commerce giant, Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN); from February 2017 to May 2018, he served as Executive Vice President and Regional Head of Express, Lazada Group, one of Southeast Asia’s largest e-commerce websites; from July 2016 to February 2017, Mr. Graj served as General Manager, UberEATs Singapore, the food delivery service arm of Uber (NYSE: UBER). In addition to his extensive experience in retail and e-commerce, Mr. Graj has extensive experience as an entrepreneur, investor and startup founder. Before founding Fusion AI, he founded and served as the CEO of Apricot Delivery, a Thailand e-commerce delivery service, in 2021 to 2022, and founded and served as the CEO of Dine In, a London-based restaurant delivery start-up, between 2010 and 2015. Earlier in his career, after founding and managing several internet businesses in the late 1990s, Mr. Graj spent for almost a decade in the financial industry, leading several algorithm trading practices at several London-based investment banks and asset managers, including Bear Stearns, Newedge Group and Knight Capital. Mr. Graj holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Chemistry from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Master’s Degree in Chemical Physics from Columbia University. Mr. Graj has been nominated as a director nominee for Shepherd Ave Capital Acquisition Corporation, a Cayman Islands SPAC seeking Nasdaq listing.

We believe that Mr. Graj’s experience as an experienced entrepreneur, investor and operator in technology companies makes him well suited to serve as a member of our board of directors.

(Note: ChampionsGate Acquisition filed its S-1 on Dec. 9, 2024, disclosing the terms for its SPAC IPO: 20.0 million units at $10.00 each to raise $200.0 million. Each unit consists of one Class A ordinary share and one right to receive one-eighth of one Class A ordinary share.)

Industry: BLANK CHECKS
Employees: 0
Founded: 2024
Contact Information
Address 419 Webster Street Monterey, CA 93940 (831)-204-7337
Phone Number (831)-204-7337
Web Address
View Prospectus: ChampionsGate Acquisition
Financial Information
Market Cap $205.05mil
Revenues $0 mil (last 12 months)
Net Income $0 mil (last 12 months)
IPO Profile
Symbol CHPGU
Exchange NASDAQ
Shares (millions): 20.0
Price range $10.00 - $10.00
Est. $ Volume $200.0 mil
Manager / Joint Managers Clear Street
CO-Managers
Expected To Trade:
Status: TBA
Quiet Period Expiration Date:
Lock-Up Period Expiration Date:
SCOOP Rating
Rating Change