Episodes

Chris Sorrells discusses how reshoring, critical minerals, and energy security are shaping U.S. investment trends. He shares how investor sentiment is aligning around domestic production, rare earths, and defense resilience. Guest: Chris Sorrells – Chairman and CEO of Spring Valley Connect with Chris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-sorrells-5a6a836/ Watch more episodes at: YouTube.com/@UCiOCVRrRqqmq20QNV9I43Zg Let’s Connect on LinkedIn: 👉 Michael J. Blankenship - https://www.linkedin.com/in...

In this episode of The SPAC Podcast, we sit down with Seth Farbman, Chairman of Vstock Transfer, to explore the evolving landscape of international SPAC activity. Seth shares real-world observations from regions like Singapore, Japan, and Israel, offering insight into how global interest is reshaping the role of U.S.-based service providers. From language barriers to jurisdictional nuances, Seth explains the operational challenges that arise when SPACs cross borders. As interest from internatio...

In this SPAC Podcast Spotlight, Managing Director Dimitre Genov of Brookline Capital Markets explains how the SPAC investor base has evolved over the last five years. While event-driven and arbitrage-focused funds remain core participants, other groups now approach SPACs as yield-oriented products or equity opportunities through warrants and rights. Dimitre also highlights recent shifts in PIPE activity, including growing participation from crypto-native funds, and discusses how sentiment indic...

What signals should investors watch for in SPAC valuations? Ryan McGuire highlights the key red flags, from difficulty attracting PIPE investors to high redemption rates, that can point to declining sentiment or questionable deal terms. Guest: Ryan McGuire: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanquinnmaguire/ Watch more episodes at: YouTube.com/@UCiOCVRrRqqmq20QNV9I43Zg Let’s Connect on LinkedIn: 👉 Michael J. Blankenship - https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikeblankenship/ 👉 Joshua Bruce Wilson - https://w...

In this episode of The SPAC Podcast, Mohammad Hasham, Partner and West Region Leader for Capital Markets & IPO at CohnReznick, shares best practices for sponsors and management teams considering a SPAC transaction. He emphasizes the importance of engaging experienced advisors early in the process, rather than waiting until issues arise during audits. Mohammad explains how hiring the right accounting advisors, auditors, and legal counsel with SEC reporting experience can prevent costly mistakes,...

In this SPAC Podcast Spotlight, Managing Director Dimitre Genov of Brookline Capital Markets breaks down the rise, fall, and correction of the SPAC market. He explains how SPACs were once primarily used for special situations, but during the 2021 boom became a go-to path for late-stage private companies, especially in tech, EV, and biotech. Dimitre highlights the factors that fueled the boom, including low interest rates and investor appetite, and the challenges that led to the pullback, from t...

In this episode of The SPAC Podcast, co-hosts Michael Blankenship and Joshua Wilson are joined by Alexandra Low, Counsel at Appleby Global in the Cayman Islands. Alexandra leads the SPAC team at her firm and brings a wealth of experience from both Canadian and offshore legal markets. She walks us through the critical role Cayman legal counsel plays in preparing for S-1 filings—whether confidential or live—and the importance of strong collaboration with U.S. counsel and service providers. Togeth...

In this episode of The SPAC Podcast, Candice Beaumont, Chief Investment Officer of L Investments, shares her advice for women pursuing leadership roles in finance and investment. She emphasizes the importance of confidence, assembling strong teams, and recognizing that women are excelling in today’s financial landscape just as much — and sometimes more — than men. Her message is clear: with determination and the right support, women can thrive as leaders in finance and capital markets. Connect...

Chris Sorrells explains his disciplined approach to evaluating and structuring SPAC transactions. From prioritizing unique assets to ensuring two years of cash at close, Chris outlines what separates lasting companies from overhyped deals. Guest: Chris Sorrells – Chairman and CEO of Spring Valley Connect with Chris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-sorrells-5a6a836/ Let’s Connect on LinkedIn: 👉 Michael J. Blankenship - https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikeblankenship/ 👉 Joshua Bruce Wilson - https...

In this episode of The SPAC Podcast, Patrick Sturgeon, Managing Partner at Brookline Capital Markets, discusses what types of companies are best suited for going public through a SPAC merger. He explains why fundamentally strong businesses with good products, growth potential, and solid operating margins make attractive public companies. Patrick also highlights why certain asset-heavy sectors — such as banks, insurance companies, real estate, or asset-based businesses — may not be as well-suite...

In this episode of The SPAC Podcast, Nick Morgan, Partner at Paul Hastings LLP and co-founder of ICAN (Investor Choice Advocates Network), discusses the SEC’s new SPAC rules and their impact on investor access. Nick argues that while the rules were framed as investor protection, in practice they reflect what he calls a “protection through prohibition” mindset. By making disclosure obligations more difficult and transaction costs higher, the rules effectively reduce the number of SPACs and with ...

In this episode of The SPAC Podcast, Machua Millett, Chief Innovation Officer at Lockton Companies, explains how the Directors & Officers (D&O) insurance landscape for SPACs and de-SPACs has evolved since the 2021 boom. Following a surge in SPAC IPOs, deal volume, and resulting litigation, insurance premiums spiked sharply in 2021. At their peak, SPAC-related policies were among the most expensive in the public company space. But according to Machua, that environment has shifted dramatically. P...

In this episode of The SPAC Podcast, Nick Morgan, Partner at Paul Hastings LLP and co-founder of ICAN (Investor Choice Advocates Network), explains how the SEC’s 2024 SPAC rules may affect small sponsors and entrepreneurs navigating the regulatory landscape. Nick emphasizes that while current SEC leadership may not pursue as many aggressive enforcement actions as in prior years, the rules themselves present challenges. In particular, changes to the PSLRA (Private Securities Litigation Reform Ac...

In this episode of The SPAC Podcast, Machua “Motsch” Millett, Chief Innovation Officer at Lockton Companies, addresses the most common misconceptions SPAC sponsors and board members have when it comes to Directors & Officers (D&O) insurance. Machua dispels the myth that “insurance never pays,” emphasizing that properly structured policies often do. He also clarifies where risk actually lives in a SPAC’s lifecycle: it’s not during the IPO search phase, but rather during and after the de-SPAC tra...

In this episode of The SPAC Podcast, Nick Morgan, Partner at Paul Hastings LLP and co-founder of ICAN (Investor Choice Advocates Network), outlines potential legal and advocacy strategies ICAN may pursue in response to the SEC’s new SPAC rules. Nick points to one central question: Does the SEC even have statutory authority to change PSLRA liability protections? ICAN is considering challenging that very issue, not from a sponsor’s perspective, but from the lens of investors whose choices may be ...

In this episode of The SPAC Podcast, Caitlyn Van Valin, Vice President at Odyssey Trust, explains why SPAC sponsors can’t afford to overlook what happens after the deal closes. While many focus heavily on the IPO and deal mechanics, Caitlyn emphasizes that post-merger shareholder recordkeeping and corporate actions are where the real operational lifecycle begins. She shares how Odyssey is uniquely positioned to support companies through that transition, offering the same capabilities as the lar...

In this episode of The SPAC Podcast, Louis Camhi offers a nuanced take on the state of the SPAC market and why it’s still too early to say, “SPACs are back.” Rather than chasing headlines, Louis explains that SPACs are best understood as cyclical tools within the capital markets, just like IPOs, M&A, or direct listings. He highlights that the IPO market has been largely dormant in recent years, and SPAC performance is directly tied to overall market health. Louis also shares his view that SPACs...

In this episode of The SPAC Podcast, Machua “Motsch” Millett breaks down how D&O insurance needs to evolve across a SPAC’s lifecycle, from IPO to de-SPAC and beyond. He explains how SPACs have historically managed risk by purchasing standalone policies at each stage and why that approach often creates gaps in coverage and increased cost. Machua introduces a more modern solution his team pioneered: the “DeSPAC-age” policy model. This structure bundles the SPAC’s runoff coverage, the target’s pri...

In this episode of The SPAC Podcast, Nick Morgan, Partner at Paul Hastings LLP and co-founder of ICAN (Investor Choice Advocates Network), explains how the SEC’s new SPAC rules may influence litigation risk for sponsors and targets. Drawing on his experience as an SEC trial counsel, Nick notes that while today’s SEC may be less aggressive than under Chair Gensler, the statute of limitations is long, sometimes six years, ten years, or even unlimited for certain claims. That means SPAC activity ...

In this episode of The SPAC Podcast, Caitlyn Van Valin, Vice President at Odyssey Trust, explains why the transfer agent and trust industry is undergoing a long-overdue transformation and why SPACs have been a major catalyst. For nearly a decade, one incumbent controlled 99% of the market. SPACs were considered “too risky,” and innovation stalled. That all began to change in 2020. Caitlyn shares how Odyssey broke into the U.S. SPAC space by winning over a marquee client and how that opened the ...

In this episode of The SPAC Podcast, Adeel Rouf shares his forward-looking perspective on the SPAC market heading into late 2025 and 2026. With traditional IPO windows largely shut for mid-market companies, Adeel explains why SPACs are becoming increasingly relevant again, especially for private equity and family office-backed portfolio companies searching for liquidity. He projects a healthy wave of 70 to 100 SPACs as both digestible and impactful for today’s environment, and anticipates an in...

In this episode of The SPAC Podcast, Machua “Motsch” Millett, Chief Innovation Officer at Lockton Companies, shares his outlook on D&O risk for SPACs and de-SPACs heading into 2025 and beyond. Drawing from decades of experience advising public and pre-public companies, Machua warns that we’ve seen this market cycle before: an uptick in activity, rising headlines, and inexperienced teams rushing in. This time, however, there’s a shift experienced sponsors are leading the way, and the litigation ...

In this episode of The SPAC Podcast, Machua “Motsch” Millett of Lockton Companies explains how underwriters assess risk when pricing D&O insurance policies for SPACs and their de-SPAC targets. The evaluation process is vastly different depending on where the SPAC is in its lifecycle and Machua walks through both sides of that underwriting equation. For SPACs, there’s limited data, so the focus is on the sponsor team’s track record, industry focus, and prior deal outcomes. Underwriters also cons...

In this episode of The SPAC Podcast, Chaz breaks down why D&O insurance pricing has plummeted nearly 60% over the past nine quarters and why the market looks so different today compared to the 2021 peak. He explains how a flood of new insurance carriers entered the market post-2021, doubling the number of firms writing public D&O insurance from ~32 to ~65 by the end of 2022. With increased competition and new entrants unburdened by legacy claims reserves, carriers were able to aggressively lowe...