Our charts for you today explore:
The SPAC attack
The number of companies going public on the US stock market via a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) has hit almost 300 this year - and it's only the end of March. According to data from SPAC Analytics, there have been 296 companies go public via a SPAC in the US, which greatly outstrips the 56 traditional IPOs.
What exactly is a SPAC? Good explainer here, but if you're short on time it's basically a public shell company with a big blank cheque that buys private companies.
FOMO
The SPAC boom reflects the state of private markets as much as public, and conditions couldn't be more perfect in both. Startup valuations are near all-time highs and stocks have gained 70% in a year. It's no surprise then that owners want to cash in their shares and investors don't want to get left on the sidelines. With less due diligence, and fewer parties to deal with, SPACs offer a quick solution for everyone.
One particular company, that was unceremoniously rejected by the traditional IPO process back in 2019, has finally got its deal...
WeWork is back
WeWork, a provider of co-working office space, announced this morning that it plans to go public via a merger with Bow Capital in a deal that would value the company at around $9bn. That's a decent outcome for WeWork owners relative to this time last year, but it is still way down on some of the $90-100bn valuation estimates placed on WeWork by the world's largest investment banks when they were trying to court the company 2 years ago.
Waiting in the lobby
Move over big tobacco, big oil, big pharma and big defence — big tech is here, and they are outspending everyone when it comes to trying to influence politics in the United States.
According to the latest data (from Open Secrets), Facebook and Amazon are officially the biggest spenders in corporate lobbying of the US government, together shelling out more than $38m last year to lawyers and lobbyists.
You don't have to look very far to see why big tech are spending so much. Just this week three tech CEOs, including Mark Zuckerberg, were subject to a congressional hearing. Even if nothing concrete comes from these hearings, big tech is in the sights of regulators, and they know it. Will $19m a year in lobbying spend be enough to convince regulators to leave Facebook alone? Time will tell.
Prince Harry has a new job. He is set to become the chief impact officer at mental health and coaching startup BetterUp.
For BetterUp, this is a genius appointment even if you ignore Prince Harry's future on-the-job contributions. The hiring has already been picked up by almost every mainstream news outlet in the world. Social media followers for BetterUp have doubled or tripled and Google searches for the company have exploded overnight.
You're a wizard Harry
From a cynical perspective this was a magical hiring even if Prince Harry's role ends up being entirely symbolic. If his direct contributions prove valuable, it's going to be an even bigger win for the startup.
1) The Suez Canal blockage is reportedly holding up $400m worth of goods every single hour. Some shipping experts believe it could take weeks for the ship to refloat.
2) A French freediver has swum 394 feet under ice with just one breath in a little over 3 minutes.
3) The Indian government is considering a strict ban on cryptocurrency trading and ownership, leaving approximately 10 million Indian investors in a state of panic.
4) Yum Brands, which owns KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, has acquired Tictuk - a company that lets users order food while on social media and messaging apps. The deal comes after Yum Brands online sales grew 45% last year.
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