Jeff Bezos is opening Blue Origin to outside money at last, in a round that values the rocket firm at $130 billion, CNBC reports. It follows Elon Musk’s record SpaceX IPO and pits the two space fortunes against each other again.
Blue Origin is raising outside capital for the first time. Jeff Bezos’s rocket company is closing a round of about $10 billion, CNBC reports, citing people familiar with the matter. The deal values Blue Origin at $130 billion. Bezos has bankrolled the firm himself for 25 years.
The money comes from a familiar mix. Bezos will put in $2 billion of his own. The hedge fund Coatue Management is set to add about $4 billion, the people said. Demand for the final $4 billion runs high, with several major investors expected to join.
The end of a 25-year cheque
For a quarter of a century, Bezos wrote every cheque himself, mostly by selling Amazon stock. That era is now closing. Outside investors will own a slice of the company for the first time.
