Virgin Galactic Plans To Go Public Written 10 July 2019

10 July 2019
The New York Times reports Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic “announced plans to merge with a public shell company, a deal that would give the space tourism business its first stock listing.” The Times says “if the deal is completed, Virgin Galactic will be able to sell shares to raise money, a potentially crucial advantage over rivals like Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin.” Branson said, “By embarking on this new chapter, at this advanced point in Virgin Galactic’s development, we can open space to more investors and, in doing so, open space to thousands of new astronauts.” The Times notes “the transaction on Tuesday calls for combining Virgin Galactic and Social Capital Hedosophia, a so-called special purpose acquisition company, which is publicly traded and sponsored by the investment firms Social Capital and Hedosophia …. The deal is expected to close by year’s end, pending approval by Social Capital Hedosophia’s current investors.” (Image: Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo. Credit: Associated Press–©)
Full Story (New York Times – subscription publication)