The Rise and Fall of SPACs: Should Your Startup Consider a SPAC Merger?
SPAC mergers can accelerate your path to public markets, but they come with trade-offs in valuation control, regulatory scrutiny, and long-term investor confidence. If you're considering a SPAC merger as your exit strategy, this article breaks down what you need to know. You'll get real answers to key questions founders like you are asking—based on current deal trends, investor expectations, and operational demands of going public via SPAC. What Is a SPAC Merger and Why Was It So Popular? A SPAC merger involves combining your private company with a publicly listed shell corporation, allowing you to bypass the traditional IPO process. This method gained traction in 2020–2021 due to faster timelines, strong investor appetite, and founder-friendly deal terms. SPACs raised over $160 billion globally in 2021, with nearly 600 SPAC IPOs listed, according to PitchBook. High-profile deals from DraftKings and Virgin Galactic made headlines, fueling FOMO among VCs and founders. But tha...