Private equity fund EQT has announced it is acquiring Exolaunch, a Berlin-based space company that works with satellite operators to get their payloads into orbit, including through a partnership with Elon Musk’s SpaceX.
The deal, announced Thursday, reflects growing investor enthusiasm for the space industry and represents the Stockholm-listed fund’s debut private equity investment in the sector. EQT says it intends to expand the company’s global footprint and pour resources into developing new satellite launch and deployment technologies.
Exolaunch traces its roots to the department of space technology at the Technical University of Berlin, where it was founded in 2013 by associate professor Dmitriy Sternharz before being spun off as its own company.
“There has never been a better time to be in the space economy,” said Robert Sproles, Chief Executive Officer of Exolaunch. “There is such tremendous growth, it really is a confluence of technology, demand, end-product use and funding that is coming together to enable these opportunities.”
The acquisition is being funded through EQT’s flagship private equity fund, which typically writes equity checks ranging from €300 million to €1.5 billion — roughly $348 million to $1.74 billion. A source familiar with the deal, who asked not to be identified because the financial terms have not been made public, indicated the Exolaunch purchase came in toward the lower end of that range.
Nils Ketter, a partner and head of industrial technology on the EQT Private Equity advisory team, expressed enthusiasm about the timing of the investment. “It’s a fantastic moment to invest in that company both from a market perspective but also where the company is in terms of its development,” he said, noting that EQT had been watching Exolaunch since last year. “It is a bit of a hidden gem of German industry.”
To date, Exolaunch has successfully deployed more than 790 satellites over 47 missions, serving a client base of more than 200 commercial and government customers spanning North America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.
The company has held a strategic working relationship with SpaceX since 2020 and has taken part in every Falcon 9 Transporter and Bandwagon rideshare mission since those programs launched.
Exolaunch has also recently begun securing its own dedicated launches. Two SpaceX Falcon 9 missions — designated Exo-1 and Exo-2 — are currently scheduled for 2027 and 2028 respectively.
