Richard Branson is looking for a special purpose construction company to merge with another of his space companies, according to someone familiar with the matter.
The billionaire satellite surgeon, Virgin Orbit, has hired bankers including Credit Suisse Group AG to scout for SPAC to bring the company to the public with a valuation of as much as $ 3 billion, the a person, who asked not to be named because the conversations are private. Negotiations are expected to begin in the coming weeks, with plans to reach an agreement within the next few months and finalize it by the end of the summer, the man said.
Virgin Orbit’s effort would add to a series of transactions in which commercial space companies have sought funding from public markets through the promotion of SPAC. Rocket Lab, which will launch a smaller payload from New Zealand, announced plans earlier this month to merge with Vector Capital at a valuation of $ 4.1 billion. In February, California-based Astra announced a SPAC contract with Holicity Inc. which meant an enterprise value of $ 2.1 billion.
Virgin Group declined to comment, as did Credit Suisse. A spokesman for Virgin Orbit, which is based in Long Beach, California, declined to comment as well.
Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc. at Branson, which is developing a business to transport tourists to the edge of space, started the SPAC momentum for space companies with a 2019 contract. Credit Suisse and LionTree helped with that merger, which raised $ 800 million for Virgin Galactic .
A two-stage Virgin Orbit rocket reached orbit for the first time in January, using 10 small CubeSats as part of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration program. The company’s vehicle is falling from a Boeing Co. jet wing. 747 over 35,000 feet before lighting a flight into space. The rocket did not reach orbit at a previous launch attempt in May 2020.
The Wall Street Journal reported earlier on Virgin Orbit’s plans.