Trump's blank-check deal follows months of SPAC malaise

Former President Donald Trump’s move to take a social-media business public through a blank-check company, Digital World Acquisition Corp., followed months of malaise for his partner’s peers. The Indxx SPAC & NextGen IPO Index fell 34% through Thursday from a record in February, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The gauge consists of special-purpose acquisition companies and businesses that went public through mergers with SPACs. During the same period, the Renaissance IPO Index slid 7.7% and the Russell 3000 Index gained 13.5%.