Virgin Orbit has today proudly announced that it entered an agreement to become publicly traded on Nasdaq. The responsive launch and space solutions outfit is joining forces with special purpose acquisition company NextGen Acquisition Corp. II with this move.
Big money
It’s been a triumphant year for Virgin Orbit. The firm kicked off 2021 completing its second launch demo with its modified Boeing 747-400. After initial struggles last year, registration N744NG (Cosmic Girl) successfully proved that it has the ability to carry satellites into space. During the event, LauncherOne became the first vehicle of the company to reach orbit.
Then, at the end of June, there was further progress. The 747 launched payloads for three customers from three nations, sending satellites into space as part of Virgin Orbit’s Tubular Bells: Part One mission.
Virgin Orbit shares that the firm is expected to receive $483 million in cash proceeds after the listing transaction is complete. $383 million of the money is held in a NextGen trust account, and $100 million is backed by fully committed private investment in public equity (PIPE)
The combined business of Virgin Orbit and NextGen will continue to operate under the Virgin Orbit name and will be listed on Nasdaq as VORB. The new company is valued at $3.2 billion, and the transaction is set to close by the fourth quarter of the year.
The next step
Virgin Orbit is ecstatic about the listing. The company’s leadership highlights that the move will help it focus on research and development initiatives as it continues to navigate the rapidly evolving opportunities in the market.
“The Virgin Orbit team has proven its ability to create new ideas, new approaches, and new capabilities. They are building on the incredible foundation of their rapid transition into successful commercial launch operations to find new ways to solve big problems that uplift our customers’ amazing ideas, again and again,” Virgin Orbit Founder Sir Richard Branson shared in a statement.
“I’m very excited we are taking Virgin Orbit public, with the support of our partners at NextGen and our other wonderful investors. It’s another milestone for empowering all of those working today to build space technology that will positively change the world.”
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The new space race
Virgin Orbit provides launch services for small satellites. The Long Beach, California-based organization was formed four years ago after spinning off from Virgin Galactic.
Overall, the whole Virgin aerospace program has been showing its ambitions this summer. In July, Virgin Galactic successfully launched its Unity 22 mission from New Mexico with a full crew. Branson himself was onboard this trip.
There have been other breakthroughs in aerospace across the board. Notably, Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin program also saw success with its launch to space this summer, kicking off the age of space tourism alongside Virgin. There will undoubtedly be several more triumphs in this field over the next decade.
What are your thoughts about Virgin Orbit’s plans? What do you make of its achievements so far? Let us know what you think of the firm and its prospects in the comment section.
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