FACTBOX-SPAC mania continues with bumper start to 2021

 (Adds Fertitta Entertainment, updates capital raised)
    Feb 12 (Reuters) - Special purpose acquisition companies
(SPACs) raised a record $82 billion through initial public
offerings last year, making them one of the most favored
investment options on Wall Street, and their popularity shows no
signs of fading in 2021.
    More than 120 SPACs have raised $36.19 billion so far this
year, with backers including high-profile investors, politicians
and sportspersons.
    A SPAC is a shell company that raises funds in an IPO to
acquire a private company, which then becomes public as a result
of the merger. For the company being acquired, the merger is an
alternative way to go public over a traditional IPO.  
    Following are some of the SPAC mergers announced so far this
year:    
    
  Company name               SPAC   Deal value  Full story
 Social         Social Capital     $8.65 bln                
 Finance Inc    Hedosophia                      
                Holdings Corp V                 
                                                
 Alight         Foley Trasimene    $7.3 bln                 
 Solutions LLC  Acquisition Corp                
                                                
 Fertitta       FAST Acquisition   $6.6 bln                 
 Entertainment  Corp                            
 Inc                                            
 MoneyLion Inc  Fusion             $2.9 bln                 
                Acquisition Corp                
                                                
 Hillman Group  Landcadia          $2.64 bln                
 Inc            Holdings III Inc                
                                                
 Taboola        ION Acquisition    $2.6 bln                 
                Corp. 1 Ltd                     
                                                
 EVgo Services  Climate Change     $2.6 bln                 
 LLC            Crisis Real                     
                Impact I                        
                Acquisition Corp                
                                                
 Achronix       ACE Convergence    $2.1 bln                 
 Semiconductor  Acquisition Corp                
 Corp                                           
 Latch Inc      TS Innovation      $1.6 bln               2C
                Acquisitions Corp               
                                                
 Proterra Inc   ArcLight Clean     $1.6 bln                 
                Transition Corp                 
                                                
 Talkspace      Hudson Executive   $1.4 bln                 
                Investment Corp                 
                                                
 Sunlight       Spartan            $1.3 bln                 
 Financial      Acquisition Corp                
                II                              
    Following are 10 of the largest SPACs that have priced their
IPOs so far this year.
    
         Company name              IPO size               Source
 Churchill Capital     $1.2 bln                          
 Corp VII                                    
 Thoma Bravo           $900 mln                          
 Advantage                                   
 Jaws Mustang          $900 mln                          
 Acquisition Corp                            
                                             
 Ares Acquisition      $870 mln              (bwnews.pr/3d6Pu7f)
 Corp                                        
 Pontem Corp           $690 mln                          
                                             
 SVF Investment Corp   $603.75 mln                       
                                             
 Apollo Strategic      $600 mln                          
 Growth Capital II                           
                                             
 Liberty Media         $575 mln                          
 Acquisition Corp                            
                                             
 RMG Acquisition Corp  $483 mln                          
 III                                         
 Spartan Acquisition   $480 mln                          
 Corp III                                    
 Churchill Capital     $480 mln                          
 Corp VI                                     
 Source: Company reports, Dealogic, Refinitiv
    

 (Reporting by Niket Nishant and Noor Zainab Hussain in
Bengaluru; Editing by Ramakrishnan M.)