Blog – July 2019

This week we are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the first Apollo Moon landing.

There is now a NASA programme, Artemis, to get back on the moon by 2024, so perhaps now is a good time to consider investment in the Space Sector.

Though space travel grabs the headlines, the majority of investment is actually in the launch of satellites for telecommunications and remote sensing. The costs of satellite construction and launch are plummeting, and this has opened up the market to new customers and led to much Venture Capital investment – $3bn in 2018. Acquisitions represented just 3% of the total investment – still c.$100m, but where VC investment goes M&A is sure to follow.

According to Seraphim Capital, whilst the majority of investment was in the US, European investment grew from 13% to 18% of the total in 2018 and Europe continues to have a lively space sector, albeit primarily funded through public bodies.

Prism has experience in this sector having brokered the sale of Analyticon, a mathematical modelling company with a focus on space, to Tessella (now part of Altran) a few years ago. Whether you are involved in the space sector or not but considering your exit plans, do call us to discuss (in confidence, of course).