Greg Robinson/Virgin Orbit
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 Virgin Galactic in 2017, is expected to be listed on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol "VORB," according to a statement released Monday. 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 in January launched its first rocket to successfully reach Earth's orbit, eight months after a previous attempt failed. The rocket carried 10 small satellites for NASA. Virgin Orbit uses proprietary air-launch technology 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 Boeing 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 and British investor Ian Osborne. Branson in July flew to the edge of space as a passenger on a Virgin Galactic rocket and the company is headed toward starting commercial tourist flights in 2022.
In February, DNA testing startup 23andMe began trading following a merger with VG Acquisition, a SPAC sponsored by Branson's Virgin Group.
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