Abstract:
Blue Origin is likely to launch an initial public offering (IPO) within the next few years, its billionaire founder Jeff Bezos said on Wednesday. Previously, the space company had just raised $10 billion from outside investors in a financing round for the first time.
Bezos said in an interview: "I think one day Blue Origin will have an IPO... It may take a few years. But in the long run, it may make sense for Blue Origin to become a public company."
Bezos’ comments are his clearest signal yet that Blue Origin may seek to go public. An eventual initial public offering (IPO) would give investors a chance to invest in the giant space company, taking advantage of the industry's renewed focus; however, rival SpaceX - which went public in June - still dominates.
Bezos, who is also the founder of Amazon, said that since he founded "Blue Origin" in 2000, he has personally invested US$28 billion in the company.
Last month it was reported that Blue Origin was valued at $140 billion in its latest funding round.
Blue Origin was founded about 18 months earlier than Elon Musk's SpaceX; the company relies mainly on Bezos's financial support and has also received billions of dollars in contracts from NASA and the US Space Force, including projects related to the Artemis moon landing program.
Blue Origin plans to resume launches of the New Glenn rocket this year; previously, the rocket suffered a launch pad explosion during a static ignition test in May, hampering its efforts to compete with SpaceX in the commercial launch market.
"In December of this year, we will test fly the launch vehicle again," Bezos said.
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Bezos has invested US$30 billion in Blue Origin, with the company valued at US$140 billion
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