Saudis to invest $1B in Branson’s ventures

SPACE

For decades, space travel was seen as a risky investment, one that venture capitalists shied away from. But recently, the commercial space industry has attracted a growing number of investors, and the Kingdom of Saudia Arabia announced Thursday it plans to invest $1 billion in Richard Branson’s portfolio of space companies.

In a statement, Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al-Saud, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, said the country intends to take a large stake in Branson’s ventures in an effort “to enhance the role of innovative technology within the Kingdom’s blueprint for a modern, diversified economy.”

The infusion of cash is a boon for Branson, who has said that Virgin Galactic intends, at long last, to start flying tourists to the edge of space in the coming months. The investment also would go into Virgin Orbit, a California-based company that is building a rocket capable of delivering small satellites to space.

The deal gives the kindgom an option to invest $480 million more in future space services.

The move is another indication of increasing confidence in the industry. Two years ago, Google and Fidelity announced they were investing $1 billion in Elon Musk’s SpaceX. Since 2000, more than $10 billion has been invested in space ventures, and two-thirds of that has been in the last five years, according to Bryce Space and Technology, a consulting firm.