SPAC and DESPAC Market Update: Deal Sizes, Valuations, and Sector Trends
373 active SPACs are hunting for targets — but only 23.3% of completed DESPACs trade above $10. Chaz Churchwell and Joshua Wilson break down the current SPAC-to-DESPAC data and what it means for private companies weighing a public listing.
Chaz Churchwell, founder of Churchwell Insurance Agency and a D&O specialist for public companies, joins executive producer Joshua Wilson to unpack the state of the SPAC and DESPAC market. Drawing on SPAC Research's weekly monitors, they cover buyer pool depth, capital formation, completed deal sizes, valuation discipline, and which sectors are leading the DESPAC pipeline — key context for any private company weighing a SPAC merger as its path to going public.
What We Cover:
- 373 active SPACs: 267 still searching, 106 deals already announced
- $28B raised across 141 SPAC IPOs through Aug. 14, averaging $199M per SPAC
- 30 completed DESPACs this year totaling $38B in aggregate value
- Why the live pipeline's $575M average deal size differs from completed deals
- Valuation reality: only 23.3% of DESPAC stocks trade above $10; 40% sit below $5
- Why closing a DESPAC isn't the same as succeeding post-merger
- Tech's lead in the pipeline: 35 live deals, highest completed-deal median price
- Healthcare's active but lower-valued DESPAC activity
- Where to get D&O insurance guidance before going public via SPAC
Connect with Chaz Churchwell: LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/chazchurchwell/
Protect Your Transaction: Churchwell Insurance Agency specializes in D&O, E&O, representations and warranties, and public company liability for SPAC sponsors, DESPAC targets, and post-merger companies. https://www.churchwellagency.com/
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A One Iron Network production: Executive Producer Joshua Wilson
The DESPAC Podcast is for informational and educational purposes only. Nothing in this content constitutes legal, investment, tax, or financial advice, nor a recommendation to pursue or avoid any transaction. Consult qualified legal, financial, and tax professionals before acting on any information discussed.
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THE DESPAC PODCAST DISCLAIMER
The DESPAC Podcast is for informational purposes only. The views and opinions expressed by the host and guests are their own and do not represent the views of One Iron Network LLC, its affiliates, or any sponsoring organization.
Nothing in this podcast should be interpreted as legal advice, investment advice, tax advice, or a recommendation to pursue or avoid any transaction. Discussions may reference SPACs, DESPAC transactions, securities regulations, or public-company readiness frameworks. These conversations are educational in nature and should not be relied upon when making financial or strategic decisions.
Listeners should consult qualified legal, financial, and tax professionals before acting on any information discussed in this podcast. Any examples or scenarios mentioned are illustrative and may not reflect current market conditions or regulatory requirements.
Participation by a guest does not constitute an endorsement of any company, strategy, product, or service. References to specific firms or individuals are for context only.
One Iron Network LLC and the DESPAC Podcast disclaim all liability arising from the use of or reliance on the information presented.
00:00 - Welcome to The DESPAC Podcast
00:26 - Meet the Hosts: Josh Wilson & Chaz Churchwell
00:40 - The Full Spreadsheet (Available on Request)
00:56 - Top 5 Year-to-Date Takeaways: Intro
01:10 - #1 The SPAC Buyer Pool Is Deep
01:34 - #2 Capital Formation Remains Strong
01:52 - #3 Completed Transactions Are Getting Bigger
02:31 - #4 Closing Isn't the Same as Succeeding
03:11 - #5 Tech Is Leading the Way
03:53 - Where the Data Comes From
04:07 - Key Takeaways & Sign-Off
Good day, everybody. Welcome to The DESPAC Podcast. My name is Josh. I'm the executive producer of this, and we're sitting here with Chaz. And what we wanted to do for you guys, we get a lot of questions about what's going on in the world of SPACs and DESPACs, so we wanted to provide an update, and we're gonna provide it in a clear, concise way. But listen, we have pages and pages in this huge spreadsheet to provide for you guys that we wanted to give that to you as a download. So if you want it, just ask for it. But we're gonna give you the top five things that we think would be helpful in this conversation. So Chaz, top five things year to date. Go for it, buddy.
Chaz Churchwell:Yeah. So top five things year to date for private companies that they wanna take away as you're looking at doing a DESPAC and, uh, considering doing that as your way that you go public. So number one is that the buyer pool is deep. 373 active SPACs, 267 of those are still searching, with 106 deals already announced. Uh, private companies have substantially more potential buyers than completed targets. So that's one thing I wanna put out there for you. Number two is capital formation remains strong. So through August 14th, we had 141 SPAC IPOs that raised approximately $28 billion, averaging about $199 million per SPAC. Let's go into number three. Completed transactions are getting bigger. So 30 DESPACs closed this year, year to date, with 38 billion of aggregate value, producing an average of approximately 1.27 per deal. However, the current li- uh, live pipeline average is only about 575 million, showing that there's a few large deals, um, such as Boxabl and a couple of others, that kinda skewed the data. So 575 million is kinda what we're seeing as an average on the current live deals. Uh, number four, closing is not the same as succeeding. So in 2026, DESPAC cohorts basically have it set at a median stock price of $5.86. Only 23.3% trade at or above 10 bucks. 43.3% remain at or above $8- And 40% are trading below five. So valuation discipline, financing, redemption planning, and investor preparation remain decisive. And then number five, tech is leading the way. Tech is leading the way, but sector selection alone is not saving a bad deal. So technology is representing 35 live deals and has the strongest completed deal median price at approximately $12.20. Healthcare has a significant activity, pardon me, but we're gonna see that a completed deal median of only $2.27. That's your top five on year-to-date takeaways for private companies looking to go public. Uh, all of this data is coming in from an analysis we put together from SPAC Research on putting all of their weekly monitors into a system so that we could extrapolate all this data for you.
Joshua Wilson:And that was the top five things that you may want to know if you're a private company one day looking to go public through a SPAC. You may want to pay attention to this information. And stay tuned to The DESPAC Podcast for more of these updates.
