Astra is Latest Space Company To Go Public Through a SPAC

Astra’s December 15, 2020 rocket launch. Photo: Astra

Launch company Astra announced plans to go public on Tuesday through a merger with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC). Under the deal, a merger with Holicity Inc. would make Astra a publicly traded company, valued at approximately $2.1 billion. The transaction is expected to provide up to $500 million in cash proceeds. 

This announcement comes soon after Astra hit the milestone of reaching space for the first time in December 2020. Astra is building a mass-produced portable smallsat launch system that can go from payload delivery to launch within days. The company says it has 50 launches in its backlog, and more than $150 million in contracted revenue.

“This transaction takes us a step closer to our mission of improving life on Earth from space by fully funding our plan to provide daily access to Low-Earth Orbit from anywhere on the planet,” said Chris Kemp, Astra founder, chairman and CEO. 

Astra is the latest space company to try to go public through a SPAC — Virgin Galactic did so in 2019, and Momentus and AST SpaceMobile announced plans in 2020 to do the same. The transaction is expected to close in the Second Quarter (Q2) of 2021, and the company will be listed on NASDAQ under the ticker symbol “ASTR.”