London-listed Seraphim injects $6.5bn into space tech in just six months – CityAM : CityAM
Seraphim has injected $6.5bn into space tech in the past six months, 85 per cent of what it invested in the whole of last year.
The total half-year figure spans 172 transactions, dwarfing the 221 the space investor secured in 2020’s full-year.
The space tech sector experienced a record-breaking quarter in terms of financing in Q2 of this year, in both amounts invested and deals done, according to the latest data from Seraphim’s venture capital index.
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Some $3.7bn of private investment in the sector in Q2, up from the $2.7bn injected into the market in the first quarter in 2021.
The UK’s space sector is set to take off, with the UK renewing its outdated space policies just weeks ago and seven launch sites in the making across the country – and London-listed Seraphim at the forefront of the investment sphere.
Seraphim expects investments to continue picking up pace as the pandemic-induced downturn in space investments “is now firmly in the rear-view mirror”, it said in a statement.
There has been a significant shift in investors’ appetite for space tech firms, Seraphim explained, buoyed by the likes of Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson and their race to the stars.
Before 2021, just six space companies had gone public, raising just $0.8bn combined. However, 12 space-related businesses have confirmed special acquisition (SPAC) mergers this year alone – representing more than $7bn of investment.
“The fact that 85 per cent of last year’s record investment has been completed in the first half of 2021 shows how much pent-up market demand there is to invest in leading space tech companies,” chief investment officer at Seraphim, James Bruegger said.
The Seraphim Space Investment Trust’s oversubscribed initial public offering (IPO) last month not only highlighted the demand, Bruegger explained, but provides another way for investors to access the market which is looking at significant growth.
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