When the investment story of 2020 is written, it will be a thick volume – a global pandemic, an uncanny rebound in stocks and aggressive interventions by the Fed. But there will also be a chapter on the return of the Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC), a deal structure last seen about a decade ago that is enjoying new popularity.

History has a way of repeating itself, particularly in finance. In the last financial crisis a dozen years ago, banks received taxpayer-backed bailouts and paid hefty bonuses to their executives. The uproar was loud and lasting. Now Wall Street seems poised for a repeat, after a massive federal coronavirus stimulus and a liquidity jolt from the Fed fattened the banks’ bottom lines and their bonus reserves.

Overnight, COVID-19 upended many business practices, including the way companies interact with their shareholders and other stakeholders. Senior executives, finance leaders, and IR managers quickly put in place new arrangements to meet their reporting obligations and maintain a dialogue with investors.