Are financial crossbreeds monstrosities or labradoodles?

THE ANCIENTSSPAC knew the source of real terror. Lions, snakes and goats (apparently) are scary creatures to stumble across, but it is the combination of different bits of them that is the stuff of nightmares. The Chimera, with the head of a lion, the body of a goat and the tail of a snake, whose “breath came out in terrible blasts of burning flame”, was a truly fearsome beast. Yet crossbreeds can also be cute and cuddly. Just think of labradoodles.What about financial crossbreeds? Are they minotaurs or maltipoos? Finance has adapted and innovated at a frenetic pace over the past few years. In 2019 there were hardly any deals using special-purpose acquisition companies (s), blank-cheque vehicles which take firms public via a merger. In 2021 they raised $163bn of capital and agreed to take 267 firms public.