INCJ leads $50m round for Singapore's Astroscale
Innovation Network Corporation of Japan (INCJ) has led a $50 million Series D round for Astroscale, a Singaporean space technology company focused on orbital debris removal.
Other participants included SBI Investment and Mitsubishi Estate. The capital will be used to boost equipment production and R&D in Japan, as well as to upgrade and expand existing ground control operations.
Founded in 2013, Astroscale specializes in the development of orbital machines for hazardous satellite debris removal activities, including rendezvous, docking and proximity operations. Demand for the service is expected to increase as launch costs decline and space industry activity increases, causing disruptive scrap material congestion to worsen. The company is scheduled to launch a demonstration mission in early 2020.
"As the discussion of regulatory frameworks about space development and utilization are increasing at an unprecedented rate, we see the potential for global collaboration," Tetsuji Arimori, representative corporate executive officer at Mitsubishi Estate," said in a statement. "Space debris is an international issue that could prevent utilization of space and negatively impact the development of space-related industries."
Astroscale raised a $25 million Series C last year from INCJ, Mitsubishi UFJ Capital, aStart, and Jafco, as well as strategic investors ANA Holdings and OSG Corporation. This followed a $35 million round the prior year led by INCJ and Jafco. Other backers include SBI AI & Blockchain Fund, Koei Tecmo Capital, Mizuho Growth Fund, and SMBC Venture Capital. The company has raised $102 million to date.
Japan has proven a leading jurisdiction for space technology development and investment in Asia. Recent activity in this segment includes a $7.3 million round for cloud-based satellite telecom technology provider Infostellar and a $90.2 million round for iSpace, a company developing a range of lunar exploration and payload delivery technologies. At the time, the iSpace round was said to be the largest Series A ever raised in Japan.
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