Episodes

newcleo co-founder and CEO Stefano Buono joins Mike Blankenship to explain why he chose a SPAC over a second IPO, why a U.S. listing was strategic as well as financial, and how newcleo's lead-cooled reactors and recycled nuclear fuel fit the U.S. market.

ZincFive CEO Tod Higinbotham joins Mike Blankenship to explain why the nickel-zinc battery maker chose a SPAC over a traditional IPO, how the deal was built around a committed PIPE instead of the trust, and how AI and GPUs are transforming data center power.

Rich Davis, CEO of Xterax and founder of ArgoSat, joins Mike Blankenship on The SPAC Podcast to explain how a second-time sponsor evaluates a space SPAC: separating engineering from invention in technical diligence, what the SpaceX IPO means for space investing, and why valuation discipline matters because a de-SPAC is not a liquidity event.

Drew Bernstein, Co-Chairman and Co-CEO of MarcumAsia, joins host Mike Blankenship to explain why SPAC audit readiness and target quality have become the real bottleneck, and why deals close on the auditor's calendar, not the press release.

SPAC IPO volume has already passed all of 2025. Mike Blankenship explains what's fueling the record pace, why PIPE pricing is validating valuations, and how serial sponsors drive the next wave.

135 SPAC IPOs, $26 billion raised, and 359 SPACs still hunting for targets. Mike Blankenship explains what those numbers mean for sponsors and for companies on the target side.

Old Glory Bank CEO and former securities lawyer Mike Ring walks through what may be the first bank de-SPAC, including the Federal Reserve approval almost no SPAC target ever faces.

Serial SPAC sponsor Larry Swets asks every target one question first: do you really want to be public? He explains what founders get wrong, from inflated valuations to readiness.

IQM CEO Jan Goetz and sponsor Peter Ort explain why a billion-dollar-plus European quantum computing company chose a SPAC over a traditional IPO, and why deal certainty and timing won out.

After 22 years investing in SPACs, Meteora's Vik Mittal calls the 2020-21 boom a destruction of capital. He explains how institutional money reshaped the market and why he's bullish now.

General Fusion CEO Greg Twinney on taking fusion energy public through a SPAC merger with Spring Valley, and why committed PIPE capital mattered more than the trust account.

Teamshares CEO Michael Brown on going public to buy Main Street: 92 small businesses acquired from retiring owners, the silver tsunami thesis, and the Live Oak V SPAC merger.

Houlihan Capital's Michael Moscarelli on why a fairness opinion is a SPAC sponsor's line of defense in litigation, from post-Multi-Plan Delaware exposure to per-share allocation.

Cohen & Company's Brandon Sun, banker on 130+ SPAC IPOs and 140 de-SPACs, shares what 13 years at the center of the blank check market has taught him about cycles and deal flow.

Fraud investigator James Tunkey on the director and officer background checks first-time SPAC sponsors underestimate, and what it costs when something surfaces after the S-1.

Arc Stone Securities' Steve Kann on why not all PIPE capital is equal, how family office and hedge fund money behave differently, and choosing who you let into your deal.

Periscope Capital's Christine McNerney on what separates fundable SPAC sponsor teams from forgettable ones, how she evaluates de-SPAC targets, and why today's market is healthier.

ClearThink Capital's Bob and Ari Brown on structuring a SPAC IPO with closing fees under $2M, and what separates a well-built blank check company from one compromised from the start.

Delon Turner and Mike Blankenship on why SPAC valuation is a negotiated outcome rather than a formula, and why it must hold up under public market scrutiny.

Josh Wilson and Mike Blankenship on 220+ SPACs searching for targets, 105 announced deals, and how the imbalance between issuance and targets is shifting leverage in 2026.

McKinley SPAC founder Peter Wright, a veteran of 30+ SPAC transactions, explains why founders should weigh a SPAC against a traditional IPO and what certainty a SPAC can offer.

Delon Turner and Mike Blankenship on why data centers are emerging as a major SPAC target sector, driven by AI and cloud demand and investors' focus on future potential.

Venture investor Delon Turner explains how ideal SPAC targets have shifted from 2021's fintech and software toward AI, machine learning, and data center infrastructure.

Delon Turner on how the SPAC market has changed since the 2021 bubble: stronger regulation, more disciplined sponsors, tougher investor scrutiny, and better sponsor-target alignment.