London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Oct 17, 2025

Virgin Orbit plans for insolvency amid rescue talks with investors

Virgin Orbit plans for insolvency amid rescue talks with investors

The commercial space satellite company set up by Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group is working with Alvarez & Marsal and Ducera as it seeks emergency funding.
Virgin Orbit has begun drawing up detailed contingency plans for its insolvency days after halting its operations and furloughing its workforce.

Sky News has learnt that the commercial space satellite venture founded by Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group is working with Alvarez & Marsal (A&M) and Ducera, two restructuring firms, on fallback plans in the event that it cannot secure new funding.

The decision to line up the advisers underlines the parlous nature of Virgin Orbit's finances, even as it continues talks with a small number of prospective investors about providing sufficient funding to restart its operations.

Virgin Orbit is 75%-owned by Sir Richard's holding company, with its shares listed on the Nasdaq exchange in New York.

Its value has further plummeted following the failure of its inaugural British mission in Cornwall in January.

After going public in 2021 through a merger with a special purpose acquisition company in a $3.7bn (£3bn) deal, its listed shares are now valued at just $217m (£177m).

Sources said the insolvency planning work involving A&M and Ducera was being run out of the US.

A&M also worked on plans for the administration of Virgin Atlantic Airways as it raced to recapitalise itself during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The identities of the parties interested in funding Virgin Orbit on an ongoing basis were unclear on Sunday evening, although one source said that Boeing, which has invested in the company previously, was not in talks with it.

Virgin Orbit is understood to be aiming to secure additional capital during the course of this week, they added.

Dan Hart, Virgin Orbit's chief executive, has been hoping to launch a further mission in the coming weeks, but that prospect is remote unless the company can secure new capital.

A Virgin Orbit spokesperson said last week: "Virgin Orbit is initiating a company-wide operational pause, effective March 16, 2023, and anticipates providing an update on go-forward operations in the coming weeks.

"On the ops side, our investigation is nearly complete and our next production rocket with the needed modification incorporated is in the final stages of integration and test."

Sources close to Virgin Group said that Sir Richard's privately held empire had supported Virgin Orbit to the tune of more than $1bn (£818bn), including $60m (£49m) since November 2022.

One insider said the funding provided to the company had not been sufficient to counter the strong headwinds and liquidity crisis facing it.

Virgin Orbit was confident it was taking decisive action to protect employees and the company's assets while it continued to evaluate alternative options, they added.

Virgin Orbit was established in 2017, with a focus on operating launch missions for small commercial satellites from an adapted Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747 plane.

The company has made four successful missions, launching 33 satellites to their desired orbit, according to a spokesperson.

Taking Virgin Orbit public at a multi-billion dollar valuation was seen as a vindication of Sir Richard's efforts to construct a lucrative business empire in the space technology sector.

In 2019, he merged Virgin Galactic, his space tourism operation, with Social Capital Hedosophia, another SPAC, in a deal which heralded the ongoing deluge of so-called 'blank cheque' companies.

Virgin Orbit was spun out of Virgin Galactic and has been run for years by Mr Hart, a former Boeing executive.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
ScamBodia: The Chinese Fraud Empire Shielded by Cambodia’s Ruling Elite
French PM Suspends Macron’s Pension Reform Until After 2027 in Bid to Stabilize Government
Orange, Bouygues and Free Make €17 Billion Bid for Drahi’s Altice France Telecom Assets
Dutch Government Seizes Chipmaker After U.S. Presses for Removal of Chinese CEO
Bessent Accuses China of Dragging Down Global Economy Amid New Trade Curbs
U.S. Revokes Visas of Foreign Nationals Who ‘Celebrated’ Charlie Kirk’s Assassination
AI and Cybersecurity at Forefront as GITEX Global 2025 Kicks Off in Dubai
DJI Loses Appeal to Remove Pentagon’s ‘Chinese Military Company’ Label
EU Deploys New Biometric Entry/Exit System: What Non-EU Travelers Must Know
Australian Prime Minister’s Private Number Exposed Through AI Contact Scraper
Ex-Microsoft Engineer Confirms Famous Windows XP Key Was Leaked Corporate License, Not a Hack
China’s lesson for the US: it takes more than chips to win the AI race
Australia Faces Demographic Risk as Fertility Falls to Record Low
California County Reinstates Mask Mandate in Health Facilities as Respiratory Illness Risk Rises
Israel and Hamas Agree to First Phase of Trump-Brokered Gaza Truce, Hostages to Be Freed
French Political Turmoil Elevates Marine Le Pen as Rassemblement National Poised for Power
China Unveils Sweeping Rare Earth Export Controls to Shield ‘National Security’
The Davos Set in Decline: Why the World Economic Forum’s Power Must Be Challenged
France: Less Than a Month After His Appointment, the New French Prime Minister Resigns
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Sarah Mullally Becomes First Woman Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
US Prosecutors Gained Legal Approval to Hack Telegram Servers
Macron Faces Intensifying Pressure to Resign or Trigger New Elections Amid France’s Political Turmoil
Standard Chartered Names Roberto Hoornweg as Sole Head of Corporate & Investment Banking
UK Asylum Housing Firm Faces Backlash Over £187 Million Profits and Poor Living Conditions
UK Police Crack Major Gang in Smuggling of up to 40,000 Stolen Phones to China
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Trump Proposes Farm Bailout from Tariff Revenues Amid Backlash from Other Industries
FIFA Accuses Malaysia of Forging Citizenship Documents, Suspends Seven Footballers
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
×