While other companies have been hard-pressed to adjust their market valuation over the past half-decade, Elon Musk’s space travel and satellite deployment firm SpaceX has quadrupled its value since 2019. It is now better off by around $250 million thanks to investments from South Korean businesses.
Two investors, including Korean financial firm Mirae Asset Global Investments, made a substantial infusion into SpaceX as it extended its most recent funding round. Before this, SpaceX had a pre-money valuation of around $125 billion, the highest of any startup in the United States. The infusion has increased this to $127 billion, and its total funds raised for this year alone are pegged at around $2 billion.
SpaceX confirmed the amount invested and the extension of its fundraiser in its most recent regulatory filing dated August 5th. Initially, no investors were named in the preliminary announcement, but a source involved in the round confirmed Mirae’s participation as of August 11th. The extension was due in part to excess demand for SpaceX shares.
Aside from Mirae and its compatriot investor, Australian firm Queensland Investment Corporation is said to have made a substantial contribution to the round. However, a representative from the company denies that they joined in the funding round, nor have they ever invested in Musk’s company.
Sustained Interest
According to startup data tracker Pitchbook, SpaceX has already raised around $9 billion in total funding. The company disclosed in June that it raised $1.7 billion at its $125 billion valuation.
These recent investments prove that investor interest in SpaceX remains high despite a recent spate of markdowns by other tech firms on their own valuation, as well as Musk’s recent snafu over his retreat from the acquisition of Twitter.
SpaceX executives hope that this proof of its resilience in the face of a crisis could relieve some of the stress of its most recent setback in the United States, namely how the Federal Communications Commission nixed its application for an additional $888.5 million for its Starlink satellite broadband service.
Surprising Participation
Industry watchers were surprised to see that Mirae was infusing funds into SpaceX, particularly because it had just launched the unmanned orbiter Danuri for South Korea’s first-ever foray into lunar exploration several days before the latter’s disclosure.
But Mirae has long been known for its diverse range of investments. Insiders say the company has over $2.5 billion in venture capital alternative assets under management. These include Southeast Asian ride-hailing and delivery app Grab; domestic grocery app Jokr; and Indian ride-hailing / ride-sharing platform Ola.
