The SPAC King, Chamath Palihapitiya, the enigmatic character who is the chairman of Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc., has sold his personal holding in the space-tourism company founded by Richard Branson, raising $213 million.
According to Bloomberg, the 44-year-old businessman disposed of 6.2 million shares at an average price of $34.32 this week, based on a filing with the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission. He still owns 15.8 million shares with his investment partner Ian Osborne, amounting to a 6.2% stake.
Palihapitiya and Osborne helped to kick-start the booming Wall Street trend of special-purpose acquisition vehicles, through New York investment firm Social Capital Hedosophia. Its initial SPAC merged with Virgin Galactic in 2019 in a deal that made the Branson startup the world’s first publicly traded space-travel venture.
Now dozens of firms, from online retailers to air taxis to home insurance, are merging into SPACS, so-called blank check companies that are listed publicly before merging with an operating business. Social Capital’s latest initiatives include Opendoor Technologies Inc., a company that buys, refurbishes and sells homes.
While the shares surged in the wake of the listing, they have dropped 49% since a February decision to delay the next flight to space. The new schedule also pushed back plans to carry Branson, 70, on a separate mission in the first quarter. Virgin Galactic has a current market value of $7.18 billion.
The company on Thursday announced the departure of its chief space officer, George Whitesides, saying he has decided to pursue potential opportunities in public service. Whitesides, who served as chief executive officer for a decade until July 2020, will remain chairman of a four-person Space Advisory Board.
Though Virgin Galactic has hundreds of clients lined up to pay at least $250,000 for a 90-minute flight to the edge of space, it’s been a slow journey since the venture was founded in 2004. Plans were put on hold for four years in 2014 after a space-plane broke up mid-flight, killing one pilot and injuring another.
