Finding an alternative to IPOs: direct listing and SPACs

This chapter highlights the relentless decline of listed companies in European markets and, at the same time, the increase in the number of alternative tools. Among all of them, direct listing and SPACs, which represented a glimmer of hope for the markets even during the pandemic period, are examined in greater detail. In relation to SPACs, their historical evolution is described thoroughly, including from a comparative perspective, and so their dominant role in the markets, especially in 2020. In conjunction with some market data that enable us to understand their importance and functioning, a special attention is paid to the litigation aspects that the latest developments deriving from their greater diffusion generated. Given how recent the issues brought to the reader's attention are and how composite the regulatory framework is on both shores of the Atlantic and, as a result of Brexit, even on both banks of the Channel, the most recent regulatory developments in continental Europe (with the intervention of ESMA) and in the United Kingdom (with that of the Financial Conduct Authority) will also be addressed.