BlackSky, to List on
NYSE Through Merger with Osprey Technology
Acquisition Corp.
BlackSky Holdings, Inc., a
leading real-time geospatial intelligence,
imagery, and data analytics company has entered
into a business combination agreement with
Osprey Technology Acquisition Corp. (NYSE:SFTW);
the newly combined company is expected to be
listed on the NYSE under the new ticker symbol
“BKSY.”
February 18, 2021
BlackSky Holdings, Inc. and
Osprey Technology Acquisition Corp. have entered
into a definitive agreement for a business
combination that would result in BlackSky
becoming a publicly listed company. It is
anticipated that the post-closing company,
BlackSky will be listed on the NYSE with the
ticker symbol “BKSY”.
Founded in 2014, BlackSky
is a first mover in real-time Earth observation
leveraging the innovative performance and
economics of small satellite constellations to
deliver high revisit global monitoring
solutions. BlackSky’s Artificial
Intelligence/Machine Learning powered analytics
platform derives unique insights from its
constellation as well as a variety of space,
IoT, and terrestrial based sensors and data
feeds. BlackSky monitors global events and
activities providing enhanced situational
awareness for commercial and government
customers worldwide.
BlackSky has developed a
fully integrated proprietary technology stack
that includes a constellation of high-resolution
small satellites that monitor global events and
activities at high revisit rates, an AI and
machine learning enabled software platform that
tasks the constellation and translates data into
actionable insights, a proprietary database that
continually captures information on global
changes, and an application layer that delivers
on-demand solutions directly to the customer.
BlackSky has also established a vertically
integrated small satellite design and production
capability through its LeoStella joint venture
with Thales Alenia Space. BlackSky has five
satellites in commercial operation and is
scheduled to add an additional nine satellites
to its constellation in 2021. Ultimately,
BlackSky seeks to establish a constellation of
30 high resolution multi-spectral satellites
capable of monitoring locations on Earth every
30 minutes, day or night.
BlackSky has established
contracts with multiple government agencies in
the United States and around the world.
BlackSky’s pipeline of opportunities grew by
$1.1 billion in the last twelve months and
stands at $1.7 billion today.
“This transaction fully
funds our growth plans and accelerates our
vision of providing our customers with a
'first-to-know' advantage. This is an important
inflection point for our industry as commercial
and government users demand access to real time
information about the changes that matter most
to them,” said Brian O’Toole, CEO of BlackSky.
“With our high revisit rate constellation and
our sophisticated analytics platform, BlackSky
can address the market’s significant demand for
real-time geospatial intelligence. We’re excited
to partner with Osprey to accelerate our mission
to support our customers’ critical needs.”
“We are delighted to
partner with BlackSky, a first mover in a large
and exciting new market,” said David DiDomenico,
a Partner of JANA Partners LLC who also serves
as CEO of Osprey. “The new space economy is
taking off, and we believe that BlackSky’s
low-cost image capture and on-demand delivery of
analytics will revolutionize the way companies
and governments detect and track change.
BlackSky’s continuously growing, proprietary
database is a valuable competitive advantage,
and we believe its vertically integrated
operations serve as a major point of distinction
among other space analytics companies. This
transaction will bring to fruition the vision of
Brian and the BlackSky team.”
Jonathan Z. Cohen,
Executive Chairman of Osprey, added “We are
thrilled to join forces with Brian and the
BlackSky team, and many of the pre-eminent
investors in the new space economy. We look
forward to working together to build long term
value for BlackSky shareholders.”
Transaction
Overview
Pursuant to the
transaction, Osprey, which currently holds
approximately $318 million in trust, will
combine with BlackSky at an estimated pro forma
enterprise value of $1.1 billion. Assuming no
redemptions by Osprey’s existing public
shareholders, BlackSky’s existing shareholders
will hold approximately 62.6% of the fully
diluted shares of common stock immediately
following the closing of the business
combination.
The combined company
expects to receive approximately $450 million in
net proceeds, assuming no redemptions by
Osprey’s existing public shareholders. These
cash proceeds are expected to be used to extend
BlackSky’s AI/ML analytics platform, expand
BlackSky’s small satellite constellation, add
additional sensors and data feeds to the
BlackSky network and accelerate the Company’s
penetration of the commercial market.
The transaction has been
unanimously approved by the Board of Directors
of both Osprey and BlackSky, and is subject to
the satisfaction of customary closing
conditions, including the approval of Osprey’s
shareholders. The transaction is expected to
close in July 2021.