Chamath Palihapitiya on Why SPACs Are (Usually) Better Than IPOs

Keith Speights, The Motley Fool
·8-min read

Special purpose acquisition companies offer several distinct advantages over IPOs, according to this successful venture capitalist.

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  • Prince Harry reveals rift with William during Oprah interview

    He said he hoped time would heal the wounds between them

  • Caroline Flack’s mother calls out Lorraine Kelly and Graham Norton for laughing about daughter’s career woes

    Presenters made jokes about the late star’s exits from Love Island and The X Factor

  • Scotland lockdown roadmap: Tiers used for easing and everything we know so far

    Nicola Sturgeon criticised Boris Johnson for laying out exact dates in his more detailed exit strategy

  • UK records lowest daily Covid deaths in almost five months

    First time daily deaths below 100 since 19 October

  • Lockdown roadmap: Everything you can do from 8 March

    The first step of the coronavirus lockdown brings the return of schools and limited social contact

  • Have your say: Has your opinion of Harry and Meghan changed after their Oprah interview?

    The Duke and Duchess of Sussex made a number of revelations about the Royal Family.

  • Biden news - live: Trump ‘returns to New York’ as president to establish White House gender policy council

    Follow the latest in US politics

  • Scots don’t support independence after Sturgeon inquiry, poll suggests

    More than third of Scottish voters less likely to vote for cutting ties with rest of UK after events of recent days

  • Grandparents allowed to see young grandchildren as PM hails 'joy and relief' of lockdown easing

    Boris Johnson has hailed the “joy and relief” that Monday's easing of lockdown will bring families as he confirmed a grandparent will be able to see young grandchildren under the new rules. Before Monday, the Government's Covid-19 guidance said two people were only allowed to meet outdoors if they were doing exercise, such as walking or jogging. Those restrictions have been loosened, with people now allowed to meet one-on-one outside for recreational activities such as having a coffee on a park bench or a picnic. The Telegraph can confirm that children aged under five are exempt from such rules, however, meaning a parent meeting a grandparent can bring along young children. Mr Johnson told this newspaper: “Today marks the first step in our cautious easing of lockdown restrictions, with pupils returning to schools and outdoor socialising with one other person allowed. “While this is only a small relaxation of the rules, I know this increased social contact will provide joy and relief for families with grandparents being able to see young grandchildren again after months of tough restrictions. "But we must remain vigilant as we move through our plan to reopen society and return towards normality.” The rule tweak is one of three key changes happening today, which is the first date in Mr Johnson’s “roadmap” out of lockdown. The other two are the reopening of all English schools and the ability for care home residents to be visited by a single named individual, with hand-holding allowed. The changes reflect that fact that the Prime Minister and his inner team have prioritised getting children into the classroom again and reuniting families. Many of the existing restrictions remain, however. No more than two adults from different households can meet outdoors to chat. Full family reunions outside will have to wait until March 29 at the earliest. Such one-on-one meetings also have to take place in public outdoor settings rather than private gardens. Social distancing rules also remain in place, which means people are advised to remain six feet apart and wear face masks if close to others. But the change does end the need to be moving when catching up with someone – a rule difficult to abide by for those with limited mobility and which was being broken by some. Mr Johnson has made “cautious but irreversible” the central theme of his reopening plan, which takes place in four stages. By the end of March groups of six or two different households will be able to meet outside. By April 12, pubs and restaurants should be allowed to serve outside. May 17 is the earliest indoor dining and indoor meet-ups will be allowed, with June 21 provisionally named as the date almost all restrictions will be lifted. However, the Prime Minister has repeatedly stressed that these dates are simply “earliest” ones, with delays possible if the data tracking the fight against Covid-19 worsens. Four metrics are being watched: the speed of the vaccine roll-out; the efficacy of the vaccines on deaths and hospitalisations; whether case rises threaten to overwhelm the NHS; and whether new variants emerge that increase risk. Reviews are ongoing to determine when social distancing rules could be eased and whether overseas holidays could be allowed again in time for summer.

  • UK must prepare for 'hard winter' with threat of Covid and flu surge, health expert warns

    Britain should prepare itself for a "hard winter" with the threat of Covid-19 and a flu surge still a possibility, a Public Health England official has said. The NHS will have to be ready for a potential rise in respiratory viruses as people wait to discover if there is a strong level of immunity in the population, according to Dr Susan Hopkins, who advises the Government on its Covid policy. Dr Hopkins, who is Covid-19 strategic response director to Public Health England, told the BBC's Andrew Marr Show: "I think we have to prepare for a hard winter, not only with coronavirus but we've had a year of almost no respiratory viruses of any other type, and that means potentially the population immunity to that is less, and so we could see surges in flu. "We could surges in other respiratory viruses and other respiratory pathogens." Dr Hopkins added: "So it's really important that we're prepared from the NHS point of view, from public health and contact tracing, that we have everything ready to prepare for a difficult autumn, and we hope that it won't occur and there will be a normal winter for all of us." Dr Hopkins said she believed "we will all have our summer holidays" but her job is to advise the Government and to prepare for "worst-case scenarios". She told the programme: "We have to make sure that we're prepared, and that we're better prepared for this autumn than we have been previously." Despite her warnings for next year, Dr Hopkins said the emergence of new variants of the coronavirus should not derail a plan to start easing a nationwide lockdown in England over the coming weeks. "I think it won't change it for the next three to five weeks, that would be highly unlikely," Dr Hopkins, PHE’s strategic response director, told the BBC's Andrew Marr show. "We will need to watch it carefully as new strains come into the country from around the world and we will need to be very ready for autumn."

  • Piers Morgan torn apart for ‘hateful’ takedown of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry on Good Morning Britain

    ‘ITV needs to do the right thing and sack him,’ one viewer said

  • Mississippi governor still pushing election conspiracies despite FBI and DOJ dispelling myths

    GOP Governor Reeves instead calls Biden ‘duly’ elected president

  • Thousands of Rangers fans flout lockdown to celebrate title win despite Nicola Sturgeon plea

    Thousands of Rangers fans have flouted lockdown rules to celebrate their team's first title win in a decade despite Nicola Sturgeon's pleas for them to go home. They gathered in droves outside Ibrox stadium in Glasgow after Celtic were held to a draw by Dundee United, a result that meant Rangers were crowned champions. Thousands of fans then marched to the city centre, where hundreds more had already gathered in George Square. They let off fireworks and smoke bombs as they chanted and wildly celebrated their club's first league win in ten years. Under current guidance, public gatherings are banned and a maximum of two people from two households are allowed to meet outdoors.

  • Boris Johnson news: PM ‘misled parliament’ over Covid contracts as strike fund launched over 1% NHS pay rise

    Follow the day’s events as they happened

  • Our Girl's Michelle Keegan responds to rumours of marriage problems with TOWIE's Mark Wright

    "I find it ridiculous."

  • Harry and Meghan: What the Sussexes really think of Charles, William and Kate

    The Duke of Sussex has revealed his relationship with his father soured so much last year that the Prince of Wales refused to speak to him on the phone.

  • Prince Harry and William to reunite at unveiling of Diana statue as they move past rift

    The Duke of Sussex is determined to stand shoulder to shoulder with his brother at the unveiling of a statue of their mother Diana, Princess of Wales, whatever the fallout from his interview with Oprah Winfrey. Prince Harry hopes that the brothers can present a united front at Kensington Palace on July 1, which would have been the Princess’s 60th birthday, in an attempt to move past their rift. A source close to Prince Harry insisted that whatever had been said and done, he desperately hoped to attend the event and considered it a priority. There is more uncertainty about whether the Duke might make it back to the UK for earlier events, such as Trooping the Colour on June 12 or the Duke of Edinburgh’s 100th birthday on June 10, partly due to the impending birth of his second child, thought to be due around that time. Despite the explosive nature of the revelations made to Ms Winfrey, the Sussexes consider the interview their last word on the subject and want to move on. They felt they needed to have their say and explain to the public why they turned their backs on royal life, but now consider the matter closed, sources said. One friend said: “It was something they felt they wanted and needed to do but now they have done it, they feel a line has been drawn under that chapter of their lives and they want to move on.”

  • Royals 'had concerns about Archie's skin colour': 5 most explosive claims about Royal Family from Meghan Markle’s Oprah interview

    Meghan claimed she did not get support from the institution when she was having suicidal thoughts.

  • Nicola Sturgeon's deputy to face vote of no confidence for 'blatantly witholding' Salmond legal advice

    Nicola Sturgeon's deputy is to face a vote of no confidence at Holyrood this week after he was accused of "blatantly" withholding the publication of damning legal advice until two days after she appeared at the Alex Salmond inquiry. The Scottish Tories said they would press the vote after alleging John Swinney failed to hand over all the advice requested by the inquiry and made inaccurate statements about its release. On the eve of Ms Sturgeon's appearance before the inquiry last Wednesday, Mr Swinney published what he described as "the key legal advice" and claimed "all of this material is now in the public domain." The disclosure was made after it became clear there was a Holyrood majority for a Tory no confidence motion that would have forced his resignation. He had previously ignored two parliamentary votes for the documents to be released. But Mr Swinney published a further tranche of documents on Friday afternoon that showed the Scottish Government lawyers fighting Mr Salmond's judicial review had challenged Ms Sturgeon whether she wanted to "plough on" regardless of their warnings he would win. A note written on Dec 17, 2018 showed Roddy Dunlop QC and Christine O'Neill said they were "perilously close" to being unable to mount a defence and were "firmly of the view" Mr Salmond would succeed on at least one of his challenges. Despite this, two days later the Scottish Government started an expensive 'Commission and Diligence' process in the court fight. The Sunday Mail reported yesterday that ministers spent a further £135,000 of taxpayers' money before the case was conceded in early January. In another note published last Friday, and dated Dec 7, 2018, Mr Dunlop said there were now only two possible counter-arguments against Mr Salmond's action and "I doubt either will work."

  • Muddy potatoes sold in Tesco for first time since 1970s - and you won't pay for the dirt

    Muddy potatoes are to be sold in Tesco for the first time since the 1970s, but scales will be adjusted so that you only pay for spuds and not mud. A new trial will see unwashed white potatoes sold across 262 Tesco supermarkets throughout the next six months. The scheme, which could eventually be rolled out to all of the chain’s 2,650 shops, is being run alongside Lincolnshire-based potato suppliers Branston. Sales of unwashed potatoes in supermarkets and grocery stores was common practice until the 1970s, as leaving the soil on would block out light and result in a longer shelf life. Tesco and Branston say that the shelf lives of the potatoes used in the scheme so far have more than doubled, with an increase from five days to 11 days. They have also worked out how much soil is on the average spud, and scales have been adjusted accordingly so that customers do not end up paying extra at the checkout. It comes after a positive response to a pilot last November saw unwashed potatoes sold at Tesco stores in Bristol, where the chain says that customers were happy to purchase the products regardless of appearance. The supermarket, which in 2013 became the first to reveal how much waste takes place as part of its operations, is hoping to gain a broader understanding of how consumers feel about buying muddy potatoes. “Towards the end of the 1970s, supermarkets and greengrocers in general moved towards selling more cosmetically perfect produce and as a result, potatoes were washed before being put out on display,” said Rob Hooper, Tesco Produce’s lead technical manager. “Last November we ran an initial trial at stores in Bristol and the surrounding areas to see how shoppers would respond and it was a success, so now we are widening this trial across the south of England.” The unwashed potatoes retain their quality for longer because chlorophyll forms within the cells of potatoes that are exposed to light, and this gradually turns them green.