Already in the first round of the two-part seed financing, satellite manufacturer Reflex Aerospace has raised an investment volume of approximately 7 million euros. In the second round — which already saw several firm commitments as well as further expressions of interest — this amount is projected to increase to 12 million euros by the end of the first quarter of 2023.
Current investors include the investment fund Alpine Space Ventures from Munich, which specializes in space technologies, and the Bonn and Berlin-based High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF), a public-private partnership that ranks among Europe’s leading venture capital investors for innovative technologies and business models. A further investor is an equally, aerospace-affine family office from Bavaria.
Bulent Altan, Investment Partner at Alpine Space Ventures and CEO of Mynaric, a partner company of Reflex Aerospace in the joint venture UNIO, explained the background to this investment. He said, “From communication and navigation to Earth observation and climate protection. In almost all areas of our economy and society, we are experiencing profound changes due to space technologies. This is why the number of satellites will skyrocket, from the current 5,500 to an estimated 100,000 by the end of the decade. With its approach to cut the development and production time of satellites from several years to only nine months, Reflex Aerospace is ideally positioned to meet this rapidly growing demand environment.”
Christian Ziach, Principal at High-Tech Gründerfonds, said, “By 2040, the global space market volume is forecast to almost triple to one trillion euros. Half of this growth alone is expected to come from satellites for broadband connectivity, a field in which Europe in particular has a lot of catching up to do. Thanks to its experienced team and strong partners, Reflex Aerospace is uniquely positioned to leverage this market potential.”
Walter Ballheimer, CEO of Reflex Aerospace, outlined the start-up’s ambitions and said, “With the newly raised capital, we will set-up our first production capacities in Munich and almost double our workforce in the coming year – to more than 50 employees across all sites. With this, we are right on track to launch our demonstrator into space by 2024. With the successful financing round, we are putting an exclamation mark on this goal: The commitments of such high-class investors attest to their confidence in our capabilities. This gives us the tailwind to continue our growth path despite the strained global market environment.”
Alexander Genzel, COO of Reflex Aerospace, placed the financing round in the context of the company’s development. He said, “Following our founding in 2021, Reflex Aerospace performed a real sprint this year: With a rapidly growing workforce, we now have mainstays in Munich and Berlin, the two most important locations for German space start-ups. By leading a feasibility study for the EU Commission, we have proven that we are ready to play a leading role in the construction of a European constellation of communication satellites. Together with the Bavarian State Chancellery, we are also working on a concept for ‘Rapid Response’ – i.e., the ability to quickly replace satellites that fail in the event of a crisis or war and thus protect critical infrastructures. With this, we have positioned ourselves strongly in two future fields in 2022 and are ready to face the challenges in the next year.”
Reflex Aerospace was founded in 2021. The Berlin and Munich-based NewSpace start-up aims to modernise the market with high-performance satellites tailored to individual needs. Through software-based operations and service-oriented offers, the company meets the needs of its customers faster, at a significantly lower cost and more flexibly than established NewSpace manufacturers today. Together with its partner companies Mynaric, Isar Aerospace and SES, Reflex Aerospace is a shareholder in the joint venture UNIO, which aims to build a European satellite constellation for broadband internet.
