BuzzFeed SPAC Financial Model

• Multi-brand digital media platform targeting Gen Z and Millennials.
• Core brands: BuzzFeed, BuzzFeed News, Tasty (food), HuffPost (news), Complex Networks (youth culture/streetwear - pending acquisition), and emerging brands (As/Is, Bring Me!, Goodful, Nifty, Playfull).
• Proprietary tech stack: ML-powered headline optimization, quiz maker (37M unique quiz takers), recommendation algorithms, content scheduling automation.
• Content-to-commerce flywheel: data-driven content drives audience, audience enables commerce (affiliate, branded product, ecommerce).
• Revenue model diversified across three streams: Advertising, Content (licensing/branded content), Commerce (affiliate/owned products).

• No explicit TAM/SAM/SOM slide.
• Secular tailwinds cited: shift to digital content and commerce, evolving privacy landscape reducing mega-platform ad dominance, growth in video/social advertising.
• BuzzFeed positions as #1 in time spent among Gen Z + Millennials in U.S. vs. core competitor set.
• Gen Z + Millennials: ~73% read BuzzFeed monthly; 3 out of 4 U.S. Millennials and almost half of U.S. Gen Z read BuzzFeed monthly.
• Competitive benchmarks (revenue CAGR 2020A–2022E): Digital media peers mean 18.5%, median 16.7%; BuzzFeed PF at 26.3%.

Three revenue streams - all pro forma for Complex, excluding go90:

• Commerce revenue is the fastest-growing segment (55% CAGR 2020A–2024E) and highest margin.
• Commerce drove ~$500M in attributable transactions in 2020, up 62% YoY (revenue to BuzzFeed from this was $57M).
• Revenue mix shift: Commerce grows from 13% of total (2020A) to 31% (2024E).
• Top 5 client concentration (advertising/content): annual spend grew $27M → $39M (42% YoY) for top 5 clients.

Historical financials (Pro Forma, excl. go90, excl. HuffPost for 2019A/2020A):

• 2019A Revenue: $425M; Adj. EBITDA: ($14M) / (3%) margin
• 2020A Revenue: $421M (–1% growth); Adj. EBITDA: $17M / 4% margin

Stand-alone BuzzFeed (excl. Complex) near-term:

• 2020A: BuzzFeed standalone $321M revenue, $31M Adj. EBITDA (10% margin)
• 2021E: BuzzFeed standalone $402M revenue, $55M Adj. EBITDA (14% margin)
• 2022E: BuzzFeed standalone $508M revenue, $102M Adj. EBITDA (20% margin)

Complex Networks (standalone):

• 2020A: $100M revenue, ($14M) Adj. EBITDA
• 2021E: $119M revenue, $2M Adj. EBITDA
• 2022E: $146M revenue, $16M Adj. EBITDA

Pro Forma combined projections (BuzzFeed + Complex + HuffPost):

• 2021E: $521M revenue (+24%), $57M Adj. EBITDA (11% margin)
• 2022E: $654M revenue (+25%), $117M Adj. EBITDA (18% margin)
• 2023E: $833M revenue (+28%), $187M Adj. EBITDA (22% margin)
• 2024E: $1,063M revenue (+28%), $263M Adj. EBITDA (25% margin)
• 2020A–2024E revenue CAGR: 26%

Audience / engagement:

• #1 in time spent (U.S.) among Gen Z + Millennials vs. core peers
• BuzzFeed Digital: 38M unique visitors (Gen Z + Millennials), 806M minutes/month
• Tasty: 196M Facebook followers (Nov 2020), ~15x growth from 13M (Nov 2015)
• Tasty: 2.2B monthly views across platforms; 1 in 3 Americans see Tasty monthly
• BuzzFeed: 20M+ YouTube subscribers, 69M monthly likes/comments/shares
• BuzzFeed News: 24M monthly unique visitors
• HuffPost: 11M monthly unique visitors, 51M monthly minutes
• Complex: 150M+ monthly video views, 14M monthly unique visitors (Gen Z + Millennials)
• 4.0B average minutes watched monthly across all platforms in 2020

• No CAC or LTV data in deck.
• COGS as % of revenue: trending flat ~50–51% (2019A–2021E), then improving to 47% by 2024E.
• OpEx as % of revenue: declining from 51% (2019A) to 29% (2024E) - operating leverage story.
• Implied gross margin: ~49–53% range based on COGS %.
• Commerce identified as highest-margin revenue stream within the mix.
• Top 5 client retention (advertising): $27M spend in 2019A → $39M in 2020A (+42% YoY).

• Core competitor set: Vox Media, Group Nine Media, Vice Media, POPSUGAR, Refinery29.
• BuzzFeed claims dominant lead on time spent: 806M minutes vs. Vox Media 213M, Group Nine 55M, Vice 32M.
• Moats: proprietary ML tech stack (headline optimization, quiz engine, content scheduling), first-party data flywheel, brand portfolio breadth, cross-platform distribution.
• Commerce moat: inspiration-driven discovery model (content → purchase intent) claimed to be differentiated from intent-based commerce.
• Comparable companies on EV/Revenue 2022E: BuzzFeed at 2.3x vs. median 4.0x for digital media peers (pitched as discount to peers).

Team (presenters):

• Jonah Peretti - Co-Founder & CEO; co-founded HuffPost (2005).
• Felicia DellaFortuna - CFO; former Senior Director of Finance at Viant, previously at XIX Entertainment and Ernst & Young.
• Adam Rothstein (890) - Executive Chairman; co-founder Disruptive Technology Partners, 20+ years investment experience.
• Michael Del Nin (890) - CFO & COO; former co-CEO of Central European Media Enterprises.

Transaction structure / funding:

• SPAC: 890 5th Avenue Partners, Inc.
• Post-closing entity: BuzzFeed, Inc., listed on NASDAQ.
• Total Sources: $1,926M (Existing BuzzFeed equity rollover $1,335M + SPAC trust cash $288M + target balance sheet cash $154M + Convertible Note $150M).
• Total Uses: $1,926M (equity rollover $1,235M + Complex stock consideration $100M + Complex cash payment $200M + cash to balance sheet $356M + transaction expenses $35M).
• Convertible Note: $150M, 5-year unsecured, 7.00% coupon, $12.50 conversion price.
• Illustrative pro forma EV: $1,530M at $10/share (170.165M shares outstanding).
• Pro forma ownership: BuzzFeed existing shareholders 72.5%, Complex shareholders 16.9%, SPAC sponsor 5.9%, SPAC public shareholders 4.7%.
• Implied transaction multiples at $1.5B EV: 2.3x 2022E Revenue, 13.0x 2022E Adj. EBITDA.
• Complex acquisition: $300M total ($200M cash + $100M stock), contingent on SPAC close.

This is a SPAC / de-SPAC deck. The primary model deliverable is a SPAC/de-SPAC model, not a standalone operating forecast. The operating projections in the deck serve as the forward-looking financial profile of the combined post-close entity.

• Archetype + why: SPAC/de-SPAC model. The deck is a business combination investor presentation for the 890 5th Avenue SPAC merging with BuzzFeed + simultaneous Complex Networks acquisition. Model must capture: (a) sources & uses / pro forma capital structure, (b) merger/acquisition accounting for Complex, (c) pro forma combined income statement, (d) management operating projections with scenario capability, (e) EV bridge and implied multiples.

• Forecast horizon & granularity: 2019A–2024E (6 years as presented), annual. Monthly granularity not warranted; management projections are annual. Add 2025E–2026E if extension desired.

• Key drivers & assumptions:

*Revenue drivers:*

• Advertising revenue: $198M 2020A → $463M 2024E, 24% CAGR. Growth rates: 32% (2021E), 21% (2022E), 22% (2023E), 20% (2024E).
• Content revenue: $166M 2020A → $270M 2024E, 13% CAGR. Growth resumes after (18%) decline in 2020A.
• Commerce revenue: $57M 2020A → $330M 2024E, 55% CAGR. Growth rates: 67% (2021E), 59% (2022E), 50% (2023E), 47% (2024E).
• Complex Networks revenue add: $100M (2020A), $119M (2021E), $146M (2022E).
• HuffPost included in BuzzFeed standalone from 2021E onward.

*Cost/margin drivers:*

• COGS as % of revenue: 52% (2019A), 50% (2020A), 51% (2021E), 48% (2022E), 47% (2023E–2024E).
• OpEx as % of revenue: 51% (2019A), 46% (2020A), 38% (2021E), 34% (2022E), 30% (2023E), 29% (2024E).
• Adj. EBITDA excludes SBC, D&A, tax, and non-recurring items.
• No synergies baked into pro forma model.

*Capital structure:*

• Debt: $185M pro forma (existing $35M BuzzFeed debt + $150M Convertible Note).
• Cash: $356M post-close.
• Shares outstanding: 170.165M pro forma.
• Convertible Note: $150M, 7.00%, 5-year, converts at $12.50.
• SPAC warrants: 9.842M at $11.50 strike - dilutive if share price above strike.

*Transaction / deal assumptions:*

• Complex purchase price: $300M ($200M cash + $100M equity).
• Transaction expenses: $35M.
• Redemption assumption: zero redemptions from SPAC trust (base case per deck).
• PIPE / Convertible Note: $150M.

• Scenarios (Base / Bull / Bear - which variables flex):
• Base: Management projections as presented (slide 35 numbers).
• Bull: Advertising growth sustains 25%+ beyond 2022E; Commerce CAGR hits 60%+; COGS improves to 45%; synergies from Complex and HuffPost integrations materialize (management explicitly excluded these from base).
• Bear: Commerce growth slows to 25–30% (digital ad recession, competitive affiliate pressure); Advertising flat/low-single-digit growth; COGS stays elevated at 51–52% (content cost inflation); Complex integration costs exceed plan; SPAC trust redemptions reduce cash to balance sheet.
• Key flex variables: Commerce revenue growth rate, Advertising CPM / yield trends, OpEx reduction pace, SPAC redemption rate, Complex synergy realization.

• Required sheets / outputs:

1. Cover / transaction summary - deal terms, EV bridge, implied multiples.
2. Sources & Uses - as per slide 32; sensitivity on redemptions (0%, 25%, 50%, 75% of trust).
3. Pro Forma Income Statement - BuzzFeed standalone + Complex standalone + eliminations → PF combined; 2019A–2024E.
4. Revenue build - three-stream model (Advertising, Content, Commerce) with segment growth rates.
5. Cost structure - COGS % of revenue + OpEx % of revenue drivers → Adj. EBITDA bridge (add back SBC, D&A, one-time items).
6. Capital structure - debt schedule (existing revolver, Convertible Note amortization/conversion), cash waterfall, interest expense.
7. Valuation / comps - EV/Revenue and EV/Adj. EBITDA multiples on 2021E and 2022E vs. comps (as in slides 33–34).
8. Scenario / sensitivity - two-way table: Commerce growth rate vs. Advertising growth rate → EV at various exit multiples.
9. Ownership / dilution - cap table: rollover equity, Complex stock consideration, SPAC public, SPAC sponsor, Convertible Note conversion, warrants.