SPACs In The Indian Context

In recent years, SPACs, or 'Special Purpose Acquisition Companies', have snaked their way into the lexicon of every investor worth its salt. SPACs are the shiniest new 'instrument' on the block and the numbers lend into the hype; for instance, 2020 witnessed the execution of a record 248 SPACs raising a collective USD 83 billion on NASDAQ¹, even as the world succumbed to a pandemic. Further, it is estimated that there are now close to 400 SPACs on the market with more than USD 120 Billion on their balance sheets². Investors, always on the look-out for ever more creative and flexible investment structures, have embraced SPACs unmitigatedly. Globally, SPACs have become the investment vehicle of choice for raising seed money by start-ups and the like engaged in diverse sectors such as technology, media, healthcare, etc.