Space Angels

Space Angels is an American angel investment and venture capital firm focused on early-stage investments in the space economy. Based in New York City,[1] Space Angels is the world's most active investor in the space economy.[2] As of May 3, 2019, the firm managed a $15 million Angel Fund and a $25 million venture capital fund.[3][4]

Space Angels
Private
IndustryVenture Capital
Founded2007
Headquarters
NewYork
,
United States
Key people
Chief Executive Officer: Chad Anderson
ProductsInvestments
Websitespaceangels.com

Space Angels began publishing a quarterly update on space startup and investment activity in 2017, which coined the 2010s as the entrepreneurial space age.[5][6][7] The report has been cited by the United States Secretary of Commerce[8] and by the Vice President of the United States at the sixth meeting of the National Space Council.[9]

History

Founded in 2007, Space Angels Network began by facilitating a small group of space enthusiasts’ investments in the nascent New Space sector. Over its first five years, it grew from four to 20 investing members, but its scale was limited by its informal structure.[4]

In 2012, Chad Anderson began to lead the organization. Anderson, at the time an MBA student at the Oxford University, moved to New York after graduation to take on the full-time role of CEO.[4]

Anderson took the next six years to professionalize, grow, and transform Space Angels Network. By 2015, Space Angels had shifted away from the decentralized investing model typical of an angel network. Space Angels began taking on a greater role in managing its members’ investments with the launch of an Angel Fund.[4]

In early 2017, Anderson rebranded the firm, dropping the word “Network” from its name and selecting a new logo.[10] In May 2020, Space Angels announced that the company will now be led by its Space Capital brand, an early-stage venture capital firm for institutional investors.[4][11][12][13]

Business Model

Online Platform

To facilitate the Angel Fund model, Space Angels pioneered a new online investment platform to streamline the communication of investment opportunities, simplify legal documentation, and drive greater investor engagement.[4]

Access to the online platform is restricted to Space Angels members and membership is limited to investors who qualify as accredited investors under Regulation D of the Securities and Exchange Commission.[14][15][16]

Investments

Between 2015–2018, Space Angels made 37 investments in 26 portfolio companies, less than 2% of the companies it evaluated (over 500 per year as of 2018).[4]

Some of the most notable investments include SpaceX,[17] NanoRacks,[18] Astrobotic,[19] LeoLabs,[20][21] Planet,[22] Made in Space,[17] ICEYE,[23] and others.

See also
  • Venture Capital
  • Angel Investor

References
  1. "China's rocket start-ups go small in age of 'shoebox' satellites". April 29, 2019 – via www.reuters.com.
  2. "The Most Active Space Tech Investors". CB Insights Research. May 2, 2017.
  3. "Explosion in VC Funding, The Year of Commercial Space Travel and Earth Observation for Everyone | Kratos". www.kratosdefense.com.
  4. "Space Angels, Multiple Equilibria, and Financing the Space Economy". March 18, 2019. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  5. "Space Angels' Chad Anderson on entering a new decade in the 'entrepreneurial space age'".
  6. Sheetz, Michael (November 1, 2017). "Space companies are receiving billions from venture backers, report says". CNBC.
  7. Mosher, Dave. "10 years ago, the world laughed at private space companies. $25.7 billion later, a new report claims we are at the 'dawn of the entrepreneurial space age.'". Business Insider.
  8. "Remarks by Commerce Secretary Wilbur L. Ross at the Space Startup Summit". U.S. Department of Commerce.
  9. "VP Pence participates in National Space Council meeting". YouTube. August 20, 2019. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  12. "Space Angels Announces Branding Realignment and New $50 Million Venture Capital Fund". www.businesswire.com. May 5, 2020.
  13. "Space Angels Announces Branding Realignment and New $50 Million Venture Capital Fund". finance.yahoo.com.
  16. Klimas, Jacqueline. "Let's make a deal: The space race hits warp speed among investors". POLITICO.
  17. Smith, Rich (May 18, 2019). "10 Top Space Start-Ups You've Probably Never Heard of". The Motley Fool.
  18. "NanoRacks raises funding for commercial airlock module". SpaceNews.com. October 4, 2017.
  19. "The race to the moon is underway as Astrobotic raises $2.5 million".
  20. Sheetz, Michael (May 13, 2020). "Space debris tracker LeoLabs unveils automated collision alert service for satellites". CNBC.
  21. Inc, LeoLabs. "LeoLabs Closes $13 Million Series A to Expand Space Situational Awareness and Mapping Platform". www.prnewswire.com.
  22. Glasner, Joanna (April 3, 2019). "Space Tech Rockets Higher". Crunchbase News.
  23. "Iceye Raises $34M in Series B Financing". FinSMEs. May 24, 2018.
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