Richard Branson’s Virgin Orbit to go public in SPAC merger valuing the satellite launch company at $3.2 billion

  • Date: 23-Aug-2021
  • Source: Business Insider
  • Sector:Economy
  • Country:Middle East
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Richard Branson’s Virgin Orbit to go public in SPAC merger valuing the satellite launch company at $3.2 billion

Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit satellite launch company is going public through a special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, marking another venture the billionaire entrepreneur is taking public through a blank-check firm. Virgin Orbit, which was spun off from Branson's space-tourism company in 2017, is expected to be listed on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol "VORB," according to a . The planned combination of Virgin Orbit through its parent company Vieco USA with NextGen Acquisition Corp. II puts ​​a $3.2 billion implied pro forma enterprise value on Virgin Orbit. Virgin Orbit to successfully reach Earth's orbit, eight months after a previous attempt failed. The rocket carried 10 small satellites for NASA. Virgin Orbit rather than using a traditional launch pad. The transaction should raise $483 million for the combined company including $100 million in fundraising through a PIPE, or a private investment in public equity, that involves planemaker and AE Industrial Partners. NextGen Acquisition Corp. II is run by George Mattson, a former Goldman Sachs banker, and Greg Summe, a former senior executive at private equity firm Carlyle Group. In October 2019, Branson took Virgin Galactic public by merging with Social Capital Hedosophia, a SPAC run by billionaire investor Chamath Palihapitiya