Benzinga | Jul 16, 2021 04:06PM EDT

Holley Announces Closing of Business Combination With Empower; Will Trade Under Ticker 'HLLY' Starting July 19

Holley Inc. ("Holley" or the "Company"), the largest and fastest growing platform in the enthusiast branded performance automotive aftermarket category, today announced the closing of its previously announced business combination with Empower Ltd. ("Empower"), a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company formed by MidOcean Partners. The business combination was approved by Empower's stockholders on July 14, 2021. Holley is a portfolio company of Sentinel Capital Partners, who will continue to have a significant stake in the Company. Beginning July 19, 2021, Holley's shares will trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "HLLY."

Holley's President and Chief Executive Officer, Tom Tomlinson, and the current management team will continue to lead the Company. Matthew Rubel, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors of Empower, will serve as Chairman of the Board of Directors at Holley.

Holley plans to continue investing in the Company's growth initiatives by accelerating its penetration across categories and platforms; supporting strategic M&A activity; and further expanding its unique event based experiential and digital marketing efforts.

Tom Tomlinson, Holley CEO, stated, "This is an exciting day for our Company and marks an important milestone in our history. We are enthusiasts and we built this business for our enthusiast customers. As we look to the future, we will remain relentlessly focused on our performance automotive enthusiast community, innovative and exciting new product, and accretive M&A."

"We are pleased to close the business combination with Holley and officially list the Company on the New York Stock Exchange," said Matthew Rubel, the Chairman of Holley's Board of Directors. "Together, with our respective strengths, we look forward to the growth opportunities ahead, further building the business for future success, gaining additional market share and continuing to grow as a leader in the enthusiast performance automotive industry."

Since announcing the planned business combination Holley acquired substantially all of the assets of Advanced Engine Management, Inc. (dba AEM Performance Electronics), a leading developer and supplier of electronic control and monitoring systems for performance automotive applications. Additionally, Holley appointed two key executives in an effort to further drive long-term growth, Chief Financial Officer, Dominic Bardos, and Executive Vice President of Corporate Development and New Ventures, Vinny Nimmagadda, and continues to see strong financial performance, recently reporting first quarter 2021 results which saw robust organic and acquired growth.

Following the closing of the business combination, Holley's Board of Directors now consists of seven directors who bring decades of deep industry experience and leadership roles scaling billion-dollar enterprises at various stages. The newly appointed Board will serve as a valuable asset to the Company as it seeks to drive growth and maximize shareholder value. The Board of Directors includes:

* Matthew Rubel, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Chairman of the Board of Empower Ltd.

* Tom Tomlinson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Holley

* Gina Bianchini, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Mighty Network

* Owen M. Basham, Principal of Sentinel Capital Partners

* James D. Coady, Partner of Sentinel Capital Partners

* Michelle Gloeckler, former Executive Vice President, Chief Merchant & President of International for Academy Sports + Outdoors Ginger Jones, former Vice President, Chief Financial Officer of Cooper Tire & Rubber CompanyE