There is a lot of talk around space travel these days. Naturally, whenever a fragmented sector starts to see growth, it attracts private equity buyers. One PE firm that has been steadily investing in the space is AE Industrial Partners out of Boca Raton, Florida. Let’s go through why the firm likes the sector.
“Launch continues to attract a lot of capital, as witnessed by the activity of SpaceX, Rocket Lab, ABL, and others,” AE Industrial Partners partner Kirk Konert recently told us. “AE Industrial has been attracted to investing in space infrastructure, and the picks and shovels for this space.”
Earlier this week, AE Industrial reached a deal to buy a stake in Firefly Aerospace from Noosphere Venture Partners. The deal expands AE Industrial’s growing space portfolio that already includes Redwire Space and Sierra Space.
Launch costs are falling, which is opening up new commercial opportunities and attracting investors. Firefly, based in Cedar Park, Texas, is developing affordable space vehicles.
“Firefly is committed to restoring U.S. leadership in the small- to-medium launch market, while establishing international strategic partnerships to effectively serve the global market,” the company said. It sounds like the company wants to make space travel accessible to everyone, not just celebrities.
Record capital has flowed into the space sector, and Morgan Stanley is predicting that the industry will be valued at over $1 trillion by 2040.
If you are a PE investor, look up, because you don’t where your next space deal might come from.
– Demitri Diakantonis
