Special acquisition companies or spacs for purposes were big business in 2021 when everyone, from Lifestyle Mogul Martha Stewart to politicians such as Paul Ryan, invested in them. Spacs, also known as Blank Check Companies, offered companies a back door route to become a stock corporation by purchasing them by a Shell company. However, the trend of 2021 did not take long when more than 60% of the Blanko check companies from this year could not complete a merger and had to return money to investors, which gave Spacs a shady name. Now Blanko check company has returned, but this year’s harvest is a different breed. The celebrities are gone, the buzz has faded and many spacs come from serial sponsors who are only a little boring.
So far, 61 Blank check companies have been published in 2025 and collected $ 12.4 billion by June 26, although it is difficult to assess their success, as it usually takes months for a SPAC to complete an acquisition. This is comparable to only 16 spacs for the same period of last year, which according to Dealogic has collected 2.5 billion US dollars. So far, none of the deals have found a merger partner.
The 12.4 billion US dollars have been the most of BlankCheck companies since 2021 when the SPAC market was on fire. This year a record of 613 Blanko checks went to the stock exchange and made a proceeds of around 162.6 billion US dollars.
Spacs enjoy “a little revival,” said Ben Kwasnick, founder of Spac Research. Empty check companies are on the right track this year to collect 25 billion US dollars, a decline of almost 85% compared to 2021, but a total kwasnick believes that it is more sustainable. “There is still an enormous demand for the SPAC market,” he said.
A closer look shows that Spacs have never really gone. But her disappointing result threw a pall into the sector and drove many investors away. Blankscheck companies usually have between 18 and 24 months to buy a company, or they have to return the money to investors. According to SPAC research, around 39% of the 2021 class were able to complete a merger or a DE-SPAC. This led to many shops that were initially traded well, but then crashed. One of the famous was the combination of Buzzfeed with an empty check company in December 2021. Buzzfeed initially rose to $ 14.77 of USD $ 10 per share and initially rose and rose to $ 14.77 and rose. ended His first day as a stock corporation by 11%. The share currently acts to USD $ 2 per share.
Nevertheless, some investors from Spacs from 2021 were able to get their money back. In 2021 there were many Blanko check companies that pursued a small number of acquisitions, said Stephen Ashley, partner of the law firm Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman. When they could not complete a merger before their deadline, the spacs had to liquidate. Some investors have also redeemed their shares before the blank checks have completed a merger. Both groups got their money back, said Ashley. “A large number of these investors could be willing to take investments in another round of Spacs with more experienced sponsors,” he said.
Of course, investors held on their shares in 2021 after a SPAC had completed its merger with a company and ultimately had shares in the surviving unit, although many of them have probably lost money. Most of the shops that were closed in 2021 are traded below 10 US dollars, the price for which Spacs usually prices, said Kwasnick from Spac research.
“These investors will be more careful,” said Ashley from Pillsbury.
In 2024 the sec assumed New rules for Spacs, which oblige to enable more disclosure to objects such as conflicts of interest, sponsorship compensation and dilution. They also limited the use of future -oriented statements by Spacs. “The SEC clearly had concerns about the implementation of spacs for a while about the rules of the rule, and the final rules on which they have decided, the market participants will probably concentrate on better and grounded disclosure,” said Ashley.
Boring is good
Spacs, as we know them, have been around for at least the early nineties. This year’s class comes from managers who are very experienced. Instead of Jay-Z, who spits a cannabis blank check company or Colin Kaepernick’s social justice Spac, there is Michael Klein, an earlier one Citigroup Banker who initiated his tenth blank check company, Churchill Capital XAt the beginning of this year. Or Gores Holdings X, the latest Spac of the private equity company The Gores Group, the raised Almost 360 million US dollars in May.
However, some of this year’s SPAC harvest are connected to prominent people. This includes the tactical Renatus acquisition that raised 241.5 million US dollars in May and has connections to the Trump Media & Technology Group. Eric Swider, CEO of Renatus, is the former head of the Digital World Acquisition, the Spac, who merged with Trump Media, the parent of Truth Social, in 2024. Devin Nunes, Renatus Chairman, is a former Republican congress member and the current CEO of Trump Media. (After completing the SPAC merger in September 2024, Trump Media during his debut, their climax reached With $ 79.38, then the volatility experienced and acts at around $ 18 per share.)
“It is encouraging to see that serial sponsors do most of this year’s IPOs, since they are probably more realistic in terms of their prospects than first sponsors,” said Kwasnick.
The banks that insure this year’s Spacs are another big change. In 2021 like Bulge Bracket companies such as Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley Worked on many of the Blanko Check offers, but largely left the sector.
In 2021, Citi and UBS were number 1 and No. Citi on 113 deals in 2021 and gave him the rights as a top spac banker. This year Citi has only two spacs. UBS has worked on one or two Blanko check transactions every year since 2021 when 92 transactions signed. This year UBS only worked on one spac.
These ranking lists could still change. Goldman Watet Back to the Spacs market and is open to the drawing of new offers for SPAC companies. Bloomberg reported On June 17, Goldman rejected a comment.
Without the Bulge Bracket companies, less well-known banks were created to take their place. This year’s leading underwriter has so far been Cantor Fitzgerald, who used to be the financial service company by US Minister of Trade Howard Lutnick. Cantor has worked on 14 offers of around 3.6 billion US dollars. Big, the broker Supported by Goldman and Blackstonetook second place with a dozen Spac offers worth 2.6 billion US dollars. And in third place there is a total of 1.3 billion US dollars in third place, the Spanish bank, which worked on five offers this year.
Not everyone is satisfied with the revival. “I hate Spacs,” said a FinTech Banker who worked on mergers in which Blanko check companies were involved. They showed on payment companies RepayPresent Payoneer GlobalAnd Paysafe. Every spacs used to go to the stock exchange and two of the three act under 10 US dollars. All three companies have experienced volatility with their share prices, and all three have been offered for sale lately. “You just don’t work well,” said the banker about the payment companies. “I have made money (from Spacs), but I don’t really understand your purpose.”
