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TechCrunch
11-07-2025
- Business
- TechCrunch
Firefly Space files for an IPO
Firefly Space is taking its orbital ambitions to the public markets. The company, which notched a string of successes this year, including a historic commercial Moon landing, submitted its formal declaration to regulators Friday detailing its plans to IPO sometime this year. The S-1 document submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange provides a wide-ranging look into the company's finances and governance plans, though the number of shares to be offered and their price range has not been disclosed. This means the the final valuation is still to be determined. Firefly is heading into the Initial Public Offering with $176.9 million in cash and cash equivalents. And while it has incurred negative cash flows and losses from operations, Firefly projected that its cash is adequate to meet its liquidity needs for at least 12 months. The company does have a lot of debt: about $173.6 million, including a $136.1 million term loan with a 13.87% interest rate. The net proceeds from the IPO will be used in part to repay that outstanding borrowing, according to the S-1. Firefly reportedly scored $55.8 million in revenue as of March 31, up from just $8.3 million for the same period in 2024. The majority of that — around $50 million — is from 'spacecraft solutions,' or its Blue Ghost lander missions, and just $5 million from launch. But hardware is an expensive endeavor, and Firefly is still burning a lot of money: the cost of sales, or incurred expenses, was nearly as much as revenue: about $53 million as of March 31, leaving just $2.2 million in gross profit. The company operated at a net loss of $231.1 million for the 2024 fiscal year, up from $135.5 million in 2023. Its net losses at the end of the first quarter were $60.1 million. Yet the company tells prospective investors that it sees nothing but growth ahead, and there's a handful of huge developments in the pipeline that could prove that to be true. That includes a major partnership with defense giant Northrop Grumman for a new, reusable launch vehicle called Eclipse, a launch agreement for up to 25 launches with Lockheed Martin, and the impending commercial debut of Elytra, a spacecraft line designed for in-space transportation services. The company also cited strong customer demand, noting that as of March 31 it had about $1.1 billion worth of backlogged launch orders and spacecraft contracts. That's about double from the $560 million in backlogged orders it had from a year prior. That big boost came from three multi-launch agreements for Firefly's small Alpha rocket and an additional lunar delivery contract for its Blue Ghost lander. The regulatory document also states Firefly intends to be a 'controlled company' — essentially, that it will leverage Nasdaq rules to ensure that AE Industrial Partners, the private equity firm that bought a majority stake in Firefly in 2022, will retain significant governance control over the company even after it is listed on the public markets. The company intends to list on the Nasdaq Global Markets under the ticker symbol $FLY. The news comes after a relative quiet period of space company exits. There was a slew of space companies that went public via mergers with special purpose acquisition companies in 2021 and 2022, many of which have failed to perform. Techcrunch event Save up to $475 on your TechCrunch All Stage pass Build smarter. Scale faster. Connect deeper. Join visionaries from Precursor Ventures, NEA, Index Ventures, Underscore VC, and beyond for a day packed with strategies, workshops, and meaningful connections. Save $450 on your TechCrunch All Stage pass Build smarter. Scale faster. Connect deeper. Join visionaries from Precursor Ventures, NEA, Index Ventures, Underscore VC, and beyond for a day packed with strategies, workshops, and meaningful connections. Boston, MA | REGISTER NOW Firefly's IPO will likely provide some much-needed liquidity to the market. Its IPO comes just one month after Voyager Space, a space company building the private space station Starlab, filed its IPO paperwork last month.
The Guardian
09-07-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Looser bonus rules and tax breaks needed to save London stock market, says CBI
The London stock market risks 'drifting into irrelevance' without government and regulatory reforms, ranging from tax breaks for stock market listings to looser bonus rules for directors, a lobbying group has said. The 20 recommendation put forward by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), which lobbies on behalf of UK businesses, suggest financial incentives, marketing campaigns and boardroom pay are central to guaranteeing the future success of the London Stock Exchange, which has been losing stock market listings and floats to foreign rivals. 'With domestic capital shifting away from UK equities, new listings having slowed … and high-growth firms often looking overseas to raise capital, the UK stands at a pivotal moment for the future of its public equity markets,' the CBI said. The lobbying group claims that tax breaks could persuade more companies to list their shares. By making the costs of a flotation or initial public offering (IPO) tax deductible, the government would be ensuring more cash is available for reinvestment and growth, the CBI's Revitalising UK Public Markets report said. 'IPOs are time-consuming, costly, and uncertain. The lack of tax deductibility for IPO expenses reduces the net proceeds retained by companies and may deter listings,' it said. The London Stock Exchange was dealt another potential blow last week when it was reported that Pascal Soriot, the chief executive of AstraZeneca, had discussed shifting the stock market listing of the UK's most valuable listed company to the US. The report also said the UK should take advantage of uncertainty in the US, where a lack of predictable policy announcements from Donald Trump has made London a more attractive home for foreign companies' secondary listings. 'Many Asian markets are growing faster than the UK but this presents an opportunity. London can offer companies in these regions a complementary venue for additional listings, particularly at a time when any Asian companies are becoming more cautious about extra-territorial US capital markets regulation,' the report said. It comes days before the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, is to make her Mansion House speech and release the government's financial services strategy, which is widely expected to suggest reforms to Isa savings rules, pension investments, and further City deregulation to increase growth and competition. However, company rules should also be reviewed if government and regulators hope to revive the London market, the CBI report recommended. That included overhauling bonus rules for nonexecutive board members, which could encourage bosses to take more risks, it said. Nonexecutive directors are barred from receiving share options or other types performance-related pay, under the UK corporate governance code. This is to 'preserve independence and objectivity', the CBI said. However, the lobby group said restrictions around share-based bonuses 'may inadvertently encourage risk-averse board cultures'. . The CBI said that the report was based on feedback from chairs and leaders of more than 30 listed companies, including FTSE 100 firms, as well as big investment houses and advisers. Rupert Soames, chair of the CBI, said: 'Most of the challenges facing the UK equity markets are common to other markets, including the growth of private capital, the increase in passive investment funds, and investors shifting assets to US markets. 'The opportunity now is for the UK to build on the work already done to lead the world in finding innovative solutions which will once again make London attractive to companies wishing to raise capital and list their stock, and to retail and institutional investors who wish to participate in the wealth creation owning stocks and shares provide.'
Bloomberg
30-06-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Bloomberg Daybreak: Europe 06/30/2025
Bloomberg Daybreak Europe is your essential morning viewing to stay ahead. Live from London, we set the agenda for your day, catching you up with overnight markets news from the US and Asia. And we'll tell you what matters for investors in Europe, giving you insight before trading begins. Today's guest: Tatjana Greil Castro, Muzinich Public Markets Co-Head. (Source: Bloomberg)
