Axelspace Holdings Corporation has completed their Series C funding round, raising approximately JPY 2.58 billion (equivalent to $23.8 million). The round sees the allocation of new shares to The Space Frontier Fund, several other venture capitals and corporate investors.
- The Space Frontier Fund (Managed by SPARX Innovation for Future Co., Ltd.)
- Japan Co-Invest III Limited Partnership (Managed by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Investment Co., Ltd.)
- Japan Post Investment I, ILP (Managed by Japan Post Investment Corporation)
- 31VENTURES – Global Brain – Growth I Joint Project (Managed by Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd. and Global Brain Corporation)
- KYOCERA Corporation
- Mitsubishi UFJ Capital VII, Limited Partnership (Managed by Mitsubishi UFJ Capital Co., Ltd.)
Axelspace Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Axelspace Holdings Corporation, has been developing a next-generation EO platform named AxelGlobe that will possess the capability of obtaining images of the entire planet with high frequency. With this funding, Axelspace plans to manufacture and launch five more optical smallsats called GRUS in 2023, which will evolve AxelGlobe as a constellation of 10 satellites in total. The completion of 10 satellite constellation will enable the company to monitor any location on the Earth on a daily basis and will create new business opportunities in more fields than ever before possible.
“We are confident that 2021 will become the most exciting year for Axelspace since we inaugurated AxelGlobe project 6 years ago. After the successful launch of 4 GRUS satellites on March 22, we have been smoothly preparing for the start of official service with 5 satellites. The operation of a satellite constellation is the very first achievement in Japan and we are very proud that we have added a new page to the history of Japanese space activities. Through the close of Series C this time, we have successfully secured the funds to add 5 more GRUS satellites to our AxelGlobe constellation in 2023, which is a big step toward the completion of 10-satellite constellation allowing the daily monitoring of any location in the world. We will accelerate the collaboration and partnership with various players in a wide range of industries, positioning 2021 as the first year to disseminate satellite data to the world,” said Yuya Nakamura, the President and CEO of Axelspace Holdings Corporation.
“Mitsui Fudosan has been following the growth of Axelspace for a long time, from supporting its office relocation and expansion in 2015 to joining the company’s Series B financing as a lead investor in 2018. In the concept of AxelGlobe to monitor the whole Earth with high frequency we see a big potential to create a new industry beyond our core business of community development. It has become even more realistic after the successful launch of 4 GRUS satellites in March this year, and we look forward to the completion of 10-satellite constellation in 2023 and further opportunities for collaboration in various aspects through the Series C round of investment,” said Mr. Shinji Kato, a Project Manager at Business Development Group, Venture Co-creation Department of Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd., one of the accepting institutions and the continuing investor from the Series B financing that was completed in 2018.
