When shareholders of Churchill Capital X recently approved its merger with Infleqtion, they did something rare in today’s SPAC market: they did not redeem.

Investors preserved nearly the entire trust account ahead of the merger, leaving Infleqtion, a quantum technology company, with expected gross proceeds of more than USD 550m. The financing includes almost all of the trust cash and more than USD 125m from a private investment in public equity (PIPE).

In a market defined by redemptions, the deal stands out.

One advisor estimates the three-year median redemption rate for special purpose acquisition companies is about 95%, forcing many sponsors to rebuild financing through PIPEs or revised terms simply to close transactions.

The Churchill-Infleqtion merger broke that pattern. Only about 0.09% of shareholders redeemed, leaving roughly 99.91% of the trust intact. Such outcomes have been rare since the SPAC boom ended in 2021, when many mergers depended on replacement capital after heavy redemptions.

Some other de-SPAC transactions have achieved relatively low redemption rates. Ukrainian telecom operator Kyivstar and San Francisco-based biotech BridgeBio Oncology Therapeutics, both spun out of publicly traded parents, recorded redemption rates below 40% last year. None, however, matched Churchill-Infleqtion.

Sponsors attribute the result to the Louisville, Colorado-based company’s defensible valuation and straightforward capital structure. In a market still debating the role of SPACs in public capital formation, market participants say the transaction is seen as a new reference point.

A more disciplined SPAC market

One reason SPACs became popular in 2020 and 2021, according to a consultant, was that IPO bankers realized how easy it was to sell SPACs to credit funds. The pitch was simple: take undeployed cash sitting in treasuries, put it into a SPAC trust that is also invested in treasuries, earn the same return, keep redemption optionality, and collect fees. As a result, many funds backed teams with little or no expertise, which led to poor transactions and liquidations.

In the current cycle, SPACs are returning with tighter underwriting and more experienced sponsors. Investors and bankers say they are placing greater emphasis on durable businesses and realistic projections. Companies pursuing mergers are generally better prepared for public markets, and disclosures have become more conservative.

Market conditions have also made PIPE financings easier to execute than during prior periods of rising interest rates. Sponsors are forming SPACs again as companies seek capital, with 46 out of 68 North American IPOs so far in 2026, or 67%, coming from newly created SPACs, according to Dealogic. Last year, SPACs only made up about 24% of the region’s IPOs.

Advisors say SPACs have reemerged as a standard option for businesses considering a public listing, alongside traditional IPOs and late-stage private financings. SPAC mergers combine a listing and capital raise in a single transaction, often with lower upfront costs than an IPO.

One advisor estimates companies may spend USD 500,000 to USD 700,000 pursuing a SPAC transaction, compared with USD 5m to USD 10m or more for a traditional IPO.

Execution risk is also lower. IPO processes typically take well over six months and require companies to commit substantial capital before a deal is certain to close. The difference can be significant if market conditions deteriorate.

The advisor described a foreign logistics firm that completed most of the IPO process before postponing the offering amid weaker markets, leaving roughly USD 13m in IPO-related liabilities and a resulting working capital shortfall.

Still, another advisor noted that although dozens of new blank-check firms are being launched, only a modest number of de‑SPAC transactions are reaching completion. “A lot of these SPAC deals fail,” this advisor said.

The pipeline has shifted toward companies with established operations and clearer revenue potential. Financial services, nuclear energy, and aerospace and defense are attracting interest, along with emerging technologies such as quantum computing and artificial intelligence.

Quantum companies in particular have used the structure. IonQ, Rigetti Computing, and D-Wave Quantum went public between 2021 and 2022 and are all trading above their merger price. Xanadu Quantum Technologies and Horizon Quantum Computing have agreed to SPAC mergers that are expected to close soon.

Following Infleqtion’s public market debut last week, Finnish-based IQM Quantum Computers this week announced a merger with Real Asset Acquisition. The SPAC’s shares jumped 3% on the news.

“Quantum is an area people are fascinated by and also not well educated about,” one investor said. “Many of the quantum companies in public markets are not yet generating meaningful revenue. They’re closer to scientific experiments. What’s interesting about Infleqtion is that they are pursuing commercial applications sooner. They’re already generating revenue.”

PIPE financing remains central

PIPE financing remains central to the SPAC model. “The PIPE market has actually held up,” one market participant said. “Many early-stage investors have been willing to stay with these companies after the de-SPAC, and that steady capital has been important.”

The PIPE market has improved but remains uneven. Fully funded PIPEs have supported successful mergers, while weaker financing conditions continue to limit activity.

“Until PIPE financing becomes more consistent and normalized, SPACs won’t be right for all issuers,” one advisor said. “Once investor success becomes visible again, the market will do what it always does: copy and repeat.”

Private market stability will largely determine how many deals close successfully in 2026.

“There’s a natural discussion that happens,” another advisor said. “If you’re eventually going to go public, instead of doing a private round and then an IPO, why not do a SPAC combination and a PIPE and accomplish both at once?”

Sponsors say SPAC structures have evolved since the last cycle.

Fees are being negotiated more aggressively, and some sponsors have reduced or eliminated backend underwriting compensation. Dilution is receiving greater scrutiny, with fewer warrants and alternative structures becoming more common. High redemption rates remain typical, making investor outreach before closing essential.

“Today SPACs are focused on companies with strong fundamentals that want liquidity and flexibility on capital structure because, realistically, redemptions will be high,” one sponsor said. “There are steps you can take depending on your investors, such as converting common shares into convertibles at closing.”

Trading performance has also stabilized. Infleqtion shares rose more than 9% on its first day of trading before giving back some gains in a broader market selloff to start this week.

“Capital today is more available than it was from 2021 to 2023,” another sponsor said. “You don’t see the same post-close collapse. If prices fall, they often recover.”

The Churchill-Infleqtion merger does not guarantee a broader SPAC revival. It does, however, illustrate what successful transactions now look like: strong PIPE support, credible valuations, and minimal redemptions. How many deals can follow that formula remains to be seen.