For the first time, a space travel company will hold an initial public offering (IPO).
Virgin Galactic, owned by British billionaire Richard Branson, has announced plans to go public. Virgin Galactic intends to obtain the status of a public company through a merger with an investment firm. Its new partner, Social Capital Hedosophia (SCH), will invest $800 million in it in exchange for a 49 percent equity stake, and will conduct its IPO at the end of 2019, the first public offering among companies specializing in the field of space tourism flights.
The merger and investment will help keep Virgin Galactic afloat until it starts operating commercial flights and earns its own income. To date, about 600 people have paid Virgin Galactic $250 each for the opportunity to make suborbital flight, which has raised about $80 million. Virgin Galactic has already received an investment of about $1 billion, mainly from its owner Richard Branson.
Source: 3dnews.ru