Blowing bubbles: What are blank cheque companies?

You can buy a private jet, a private island, a football team, a timeshare on Mars… Hell, you can even buy a president if you like. But the true status symbol of the new billionaire class is something more understated, more misunderstood, more mysterious, more, well, bubbly. Your very own blank cheque company. Otherwise known as Special Acquisition Companies (or SPACs), these are the latest highly-gaseous, highly-geared investment tools that have taken your favourite billionaires by storm. But what are they? What do they mean for the rest of us? And how can you get in on the fun?