SPACs are reaching heights not seen since 2021, despite their reputation as a symptom of an overly frothy market.

Driving the news: 74 blank check companies have gone public via deSPAC transaction, raising about $14.7 billion so far this year, per data from SPAC Insider.

• And its been accelerating. 44 SPACs priced in the second quarter, compared to 10 in the same period a year prior.
• That puts the market on track to beat its 2022 total, when 86 companies raised $13.4 billion.

Between the lines: There are some notable differences between now and the height of the SPAC boom.

• The majority of SPAC sponsors so far this year have had some prior SPAC experience — think Betsy Cohen or Cantor Fitzgerald — with at least 80% having completed a transaction in which they bought a company.
• That figure was 56% in 2021, offering an argument that this particular boom being more stable, per SPACInsider.

Yes, but: That doesn't bar the tourists from entering.

What we're watching: The percentage of IPOs that are SPAC listings.

• So far this year, SPACs make up a total of 38% of all IPOs. In 2021, it was 64%, per data from SPACInsider.
• Industry watchers believe that tariffs slowed IPO markets — but didn't have the same impact on SPAC listings, and suggest that SPACs could be even lower as a total this year.

The bottom line: Investors are hungry for new listings, and the SPACs reputational woes aren't keeping them away.

• The big question is if there are $22 billion worth of companies that are willing to go public via SPAC?
• While some companies have fared well in public markets following a SPAC merger (Hims was a SPAC deal, and is up 410% since its first day trading), plenty of former SPAC targets have since pivoted to IPOs (Think Circle).

Chevron won an arbitration battle against ExxonMobil, giving it the go ahead on its nearly two-year-long journey to acquire Hess for $53 billion.

Why it matters: Chevron's turnaround plan key on this deal — in particular, Hess' access to a series of oilfields off the coast of Guyana.

Between the lines: Guyana's oil reserves are considered one of the most significant discoveries for the industry in recent decades, and the country is the third largest per-capita oil producer in the world, according to Exxon.

• Exxon owns 45% of the aforementioned offshore Stabroek Block, and claimed it had the right of first refusal over Hess' stake in the venture. Exxon and Hess disagreed.

Zoom out: The Trump administration appears to be taking a softer approach to antitrust when it comes to Big Oil vs. Big Tech and other sectors.

• The FTC on Thursday also reversed 2024 orders banning Hess CEO John Hess from Chevron's board, and one barring former Pioneer CEO Scott Sheffield from Exxon's board.
• Biden-era FTC chair Lina Khan had argued such appointments could lead to collusion on oil prices.

What they're saying: "Starting 5-7 years ago, investors had very little appetite for long term projects as there was a sense crude demand would decline, Andrew Gillick, managing director at Enverus, wrote in an email. "Now that consensus seems to expect it to grow well into the next decade, a lack of those projects could leave us in a very tight market by 2030."

• In other words, expect oil companies to continue making aggressive M&A efforts.

• 38 Degrees North, a Sausalito, Calif.-based company focused on community solar, raised $230m in growth equity investment, which includes new investors Climate Adaptive Infrastructure and Kimmeridge Energy Management Company. axios.link/44Cb8e8

• Lovable, the Swedish vibe coding startup, raised $200m at a $1.8b valuation led by Accel. axios.link/40oiAHa

• Perplexity AI, the AI search startup, raised $100m at an $18b valuation, per Bloomberg. axios.link/44FeLzS

• Substack, the email newsletter platform, raised $100m in Series C funding at an over $1.1b valuation. Andreessen Horowitz, The Chernin Group, BOND, Klutch Sports Group CEO Rich Paul and Skims CEO Jens Grede participated. axios.link/3IBOKZS

• "They're still relatively early in their journey," Chernin Group founding partner Mike Kearns told Pro Rata, when asked about a Substack IPO — noting Spotify's IPO was 12 years after its founding. "If they continue to do this for the next eight years — these things take a long time."

• QuNorth, a Nordic quantum computing company, raised €80m from EIFO, the export and investment fund of Denmark, and the Novo Nordisk Foundation. axios.link/4m1ca9l

• Q.ANT, a German photonic processing company, raised €62m in Series A funding. Cherry Ventures, UVC Partners and imec.xpand led with participation from L-Bank, Verve Ventures, Grazia Equity, EXF Alpha of Venionaire Capital, LEA Partners, Onsight Ventures, and Trumpf. axios.link/3TL85di

• GigaIO, a Carlsbad, Calif.-based A.I. infrastructure developer, raised $21m in Series B funding led by Impact Venture Capital, and joined by CerraCap Ventures, G Vision Capital, Mark IV Capital and SourceCode Cerberus. axios.link/4lZoyGG

• Ephemera, a New York-based company with an open-source messaging protocol, raised $20m led by Union Square Ventures, a16z crypto, and Lightspeed Faction. Coinbase, Offline Ventures, Sound Ventures, and Distributed Global participated. xmtp.org

• Blockskye, a Boston-based corporate travel infrastructure company, raised $15.8m led by Blockchange, with participation from United Airlines Ventures, Lightspeed Faction, Lasagna, Litquidity Ventures, Longbrook Ventures, KSV Global, and TFJ Capital. axios.link/44FfaT6

⚡Ultion Technologies, a Las Vegas-based manufacturer of LFP energy storage systems, raised a Series A round led by Torus, and including Nevada's Battle Born Venture. axios.link/3Ukxt9S

• StrongestLayer, an SF-based cybersecurity company, raised $5.2m in seed funding led by Sorenson Capital with participation from Recall Capital. axios.link/44DDPHB

• BPQ, a New York-based simulation software company, raised a $5m seed round led by Monta Vista Capital, joined by New York Ventures, Arc Ventures, Armory Square Ventures, Emergent Ventures, Alumni Ventures, Arka Venture Labs, Transpose Platform, Gainangels and Pranatech Venture Capital. axios.link/4nV1R8k

• Receive, a New York-based small business financing company, raised a $4m seed round led by NGVP, and joined by Blank Ventures, Verissimo Ventures, Insight Partners, Corner Ventures and Clocktower Technology Venture. axios.link/3IyRRS4

• Bonsai, a Chicago-based marketing platform, raised $1.8m from Mairs & Power Venture Capital, TAWANI Ventures, Bridge Venture Fund, Chicago Early and Service Provider Capital. axios.link/4lZ61dJ

• Apollo is in talks to take a stake in Atlético Madrid, Spain's third-biggest football club. axios.link/3UgCiRB

• EQT, Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System and BlackRock-backed Phoenix Tower International are eyeing bids for a majority stake in Cellnex Telecom's Switzerland-based wireless telecom business, per Bloomberg. The stake could be worth €2b. axios.link/4lDBHFP

• KKR invested in SupplyHouse, a Melville, N.Y.-based e-commerce platform for the HVAC, plumbing, and electric distribution. axios.link/46gxAKX

• Mascarene Partners acquired Voyager Trucking, a Newark, N.J.-based waste transportation provider. axios.link/44VzC0G

• StonePeak will invest $1.3b into Princeton Digital Group, an Singapore-based data center operator backed by Warburg Pincus, Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan, and Mubadala. axios.link/3IAcgGr

• US Dock & Door, backed by Soundcore Capital Partners, acquired Garage Headquarters, a maker of garage door products in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. axios.link/3GGxbqT

• Heartflow, a Mountain View, Calif.-based cardiovascular disease test company, filed for an IPO on the Nasdaq. It posted revenue of $125.8m in 2024 and a loss of $96.4m. Bain Capital, HealthCor Partners, and Wellington back the firm. axios.link/3Ui7Czl

• Donald Hoffman, founder of Excel Services Corp., reacquired ownership of the Rockville, Md.-based consulting business from Pelican Energy Partners. axios.link/4lzOkS4

• Talen Energy agreed to acquire a Caithness Energy's Moxie Freedom Energy Center in Pennsylvania and Caithness and BlackRock's Guernsey Power Station in Ohio for $3.8b. axios.link/3TMmiXl

• ServiceNow's $2.9b acquisition of Moveworks, an agentic AI company, is under DoJ review, per Bloomberg. axios.link/44EC0Ko

• SES (LUX: SESGL) completed its $3b acquisition of Intelsat, a McLean, Va.-based satellite service provider. axios.link/4eZjlfS

• Hexaware Technologies acquired SMC Squared, a Texas-based IT offshoring organization, for $120m. axios.link/44EfIZe

• Blue Owl Capital closed on $850m for its alternative credit fund. axios.link/4nUsL0h

• 65 Equity Partners, an investment firm backed by Temasek, appointed Sean Murphy as a partner and co-head of U.S. He will be working alongside fellow co-head Leon Brujis. axios.link/3GOeAcr

• Battery Ventures promoted Justin Rosner to partner. He specializes in industrial technology and life-science tools. It also promoted Sudheendra Chilappagari, Michael Hoeksema, Lior Mallul, and Lauren Wedell to principal. axios.link/4kMxQVF

• Madrona promoted Sabrina Albert (Wu) to partner. axios.link/3IPwQm9

Substack raised $100 million in Series C funding at a more than $1.1 billion valuation Thursday, a source confirmed to Axios.