
Wall Street's blank-check boom has gone bust
CNN
The once hot blank-check merger trend is fading fast.
The stock market has been cratering so far this year — leaving special purpose acquisition companies, which buy private firms in order to take them public without the need for a traditional initial public offering, with difficulty finding targets.
SPACs, also known as blank check companies, are facing the same concerns about inflation and a looming recession on the horizon that are plaguing the rest of Wall Street.

It was almost an extraordinary scene in front of the White House. As Tesla shares have been tanking since the year began, President Donald Trump held remarks outside of the White House with the company’s CEO and Department of Government Efficiency Head Elon Musk – all in front of a line of shiny Tesla vehicles.