Volocopter Raises USD 170 Million in First Signing of Series E Financing Round
- Korean WP Investment leads funding round, followed by Atlantia and Honeywell, amongst others
- Pre-money valuation at USD 1.7 billion, total funds raised at USD 579 million
- Funding to be used for certification and commercial launch in first cities
- Joint venture term sheet signed with WP Investment for air taxi operations in South Korea
Volocopter, the pioneer of urban air mobility, has raised USD 170 million in the initial signing of its Series E funding round led by South Korean investor WP Investment, at a pre-money valuation of USD 1.7 billion. Composed of funds by new and existing investors, the money raised will assist with the certification of Volocopter’s electric passenger air taxi and is expected to help Volocopter achieve commercial launch in first cities worldwide.
Volocopter is developing new and sustainable mobility options for cities around the world. With its family of aircraft (the VoloCity, VoloConnect, and VoloDrone), the company takes a unique approach by developing urban air mobility (UAM) as a holistic ecosystem. Having ten years of development experience, Volocopter is the clear leader in the urban air mobility space. As the first and only electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) company to receive Design Organisation Approval (DOA) from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), Volocopter has committed to launching commercial air taxi services in cities like Singapore, Rome, and Paris.
Florian Reuter, CEO of Volocopter, said:This funding round is a testament to Volocopter’s leading position in what is a highly attractive emerging market. We continue to make significant technical and commercial progress as we work toward bringing urban air mobility to life at scale in cities worldwide.
Christian Bauer, CCO of Volocopter, said:Volocopter has spectacular investors from around the globe, which puts us in an excellent position to focus on our first-to-certification and first-to-market strategies before we embark on the path to public listing. I’m excited to accelerate our path to commercial launch together with investors, partners, and the phenomenal Volocopter team!
WP Investment based in Seoul, Republic of Korea, is a leading and new investor for Volocopter in this funding round. Following this announcement, Volocopter and WP Investment will enter into a strategic partnership by creating a joint venture that will soon bring urban air mobility to South Korea’s cities.
Dr. Lei Wang, Chairman of WP Investment, said:We are confident that Volocopter will be among the first to bring UAM to cities globally, since seeing its aircraft fly in Seoul last year. As a leader in ESG investment, we are excited to empower city sustainability through Volocopter.
Tiffany Park, Co-Chairman of WP Investment, said:We are excited to kick off our joint venture and be the first to establish sustainable eVTOL logistics and air taxi services with Volocopter in Korea.
New investors in Volocopter include WP Investment and Honeywell, amongst others. Many existing investors including Atlantia, Whysol, and btov Partners, have also increased their investment in this round.
Elisabetta De Bernardi, Investment Director Europe for Atlantia, said:We decided to strengthen our investment in Volocopter because we strongly believe in its ability to rapidly bring to life this innovative and sustainable mobility. We will continue to promote urban air mobility, a fast-growing business that can help reduce emissions and traffic in large cities.
Stefan Klocke, Chairman of Volocopter’s Advisory Board, said:Our successful first signing of Series E brings phenomenal new investors on board, with further in the due diligence stage. This private funding round allows us to stay focused on our mission to bring sustainable urban air mobility to life. We have never been in a stronger position: we are financially diversified, certification of the aircraft is within reach, and we are demonstrating our advanced capabilities by public flights and strong joint-ventures across the world.
The company recently announced that it has entered a financing agreement in principle with Aviation Capital Group (ACG) to shape the sale and leasing of Volocopter aircraft for up to USD 1 billion. Once aircraft certification has been achieved, this agreement will allow Volocopter to offer its operating entities and customers worldwide attractive leasing options, a key to rapidly scaling the business in the future.
This article was originally published by Volocopter GmbH.
