Firefly Aerospace raises $75M Series A at a $1B+ valuation, plus $100M in secondary sale
Firefly Aerospace has raised a total of $175 million, across a $75 million Series A round that valued the company north of $1 billion, and a $100 million secondary transaction which consisted of the sale of holdings held by primary Firefly investor Noosphere Ventures. The launch startup also announced that it intends to raise another $300 million later in 2021, after its forthcoming inaugural Alpha rocket launch, which is currently targeting a June take-off.
Firefly is one of a crop of new commercial launch providers aiming to follow in the footsteps of SpaceX and Rocket Lab, with a goal of serving the growing small satellite launch market. The company has been developing its Alpha rocket for the past few years, and has also been awarded commercial and civil government launch contracts from NASA, General Atomics and others. The Texas-based startup has had its share of setbacks, including the bankruptcy of its original iteration, Firefly Space Systems, which was subsequently re-born as Firefly Aerospace as a wholly owned venture bankrolled by Noosphere Ventures.