Ventoux CCM Acquisition Corp. (VTAQR) operates as a blank check company focused on effecting mergers, share exchanges, asset acquisitions, stock purchases, recapitalizations, reorganizations, or similar business combinations, primarily targeting opportunities in the hospitality, leisure, travel, and dining sectors in North America. The company, formerly known as Chardan Global Acquisition Corp., provides no operational products or services beyond its special purpose acquisition structure; it maintains a trust account from its initial public offering for funding potential de-SPAC transactions, with common stock, rights, and warrants available for separate trading. Incorporated in Delaware in 2019 and headquartered in Greenwich, Connecticut, it serves institutional and retail investors seeking exposure to pre-revenue merger targets.
In September 2022, Ventoux CCM completed a business combination with Presto Automation Inc., a provider of labor automation technology for the hospitality industry, resulting in the combined entity trading as Presto Automation (PRST) on Nasdaq; Ventoux CCM stockholders approved the merger, which included approximately $92.1 million in gross proceeds and additional funding of $120 million from strategic investors like Cleveland Avenue, LLC. The transaction marked a significant strategic shift, with Ventoux CCM's management, including CEO Edward Scheetz, joining Presto's board amid revised terms that lowered the valuation to $525 million and extended deadlines. Post-merger, Ventoux CCM ceased independent operations, with its securities delisted from Nasdaq and trading over-the-counter under VTAQR for rights; no further acquisitions, funding rounds, or expansions have occurred for the entity since 2022.