Commercial Launch, Proliferation Creates Investment Opportunities in Ancillary Space Markets

Two barriers to entry have historically defined the relationship between capital markets and the space sector: the need for significant upfront capital and long return on investment (ROI) timelines. These barriers have created a hot-and-cold dynamic between capital markets and the space sector, as demonstrated by Space Capital’s Space Investment Quarterly: Q4 2023 report that found the space economy witnessed a private equity investment of $17.9 billion in 2023, a year-over-year decline of 25 percent compared to 2022.

But projections for the space economy not only remain high, they are quickly accelerating. A recent report by the World Economic Forum and the McKinsey & Company found that the space economy will reach $1.8 trillion by 2035, half a decade sooner than the $1 trillion projection set out by Morgan Stanley last year. As a result, new business opportunities are quickly emerging as a commercial launch market enables cheaper access to space and the Department of Defense (DOD) shifts toward a proliferation of assets across the next warfighting domain.

In this episode of “The Elara Edge: Expert Insights on Space Security,” Eddie Papczun, founding partner at Elara Nova: The Space Consultancy, and Kirk Konert, managing partner at AE Industrial Partners, discuss this hot-and-cold dynamic, as well as the ancillary market opportunities emerging in the space sector.

"The Elara Edge" is hosted by Scott King and produced by Regia Multimedia Services. The full story can be found on Elara Nova's Insights page here. Music was produced by Patrick Watkins of PW Audio.