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Richard Branson is looking for a special purpose acquisition company to merge with another of his space companies, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The billionaire’s satellite launcher, Virgin Orbit, has hired bankers, including Credit Suisse Group AG, to seek a SPAC to go public with a valuation of up to $ 3 billion, said the person, who asked not to be named because the talks are private. Talks are expected to begin in the coming weeks, with plans to reach a deal in the coming months and complete it by the end of the summer, the person said.
Virgin Orbit’s effort would add to a string of deals in which commercial space companies have sought funding on public markets through the PSPC boom. Rocket Lab, which is launching smaller payloads from New Zealand, announced earlier this month its intention to merge with Vector Capital at a valuation of $ 4.1 billion. In February, based in California Astra announced a SPAC dealing with Holicity Inc. which involved an enterprise value of $ 2.1 billion.
Virgin Group declined to comment, as did Credit Suisse. A spokesperson for Virgin Orbit, based in Long Beach, Calif., Also declined to comment.
Branson’s Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc., which is developing a business to transport tourists to the edge of space, pioneered the SPAC boom for space companies with a 2019 deal. Credit Suisse and LionTree were instrumental in this merger, which raised $ 800 million for Virgin Galactic.
Virgin Orbit’s double-decker rocket first reached orbit in January, deploying 10 small CubeSats as part of a national aeronautics and space management program. The company vehicle fell from the wing of a Boeing Co. 747 above 35,000 feet before igniting while flying through space. The rocket failed to reach orbit on a previous launch attempt in May 2020.
The Wall Street Journal reported earlier on Virgin Orbit’s plans.
– With the help of Crystal Tse and Jonathan Roeder
(Updates fourth paragraph with Virgin Orbit declining to comment)
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