Britain is ‘still a player’ in space race despite failed Cornwall satellite launch,

Britain continues to “punch above its weight” despite last month’s failed satellite launch from Cornwall, the head of a major space investment fund said yesterday.

Mark Boggett, CEO of London-listed Seraphim Space, said the UK remains a world leader, attracting more investment in space projects than any other country except China and the US.

And he said that while the failed launch of the Virgin Orbit satellite from Cornwall last month was a “slight setback” for the industry, he believed there was still “significant dry energy” when it comes to investment.

Founded in 2016, Seraphim says it invests “in the brightest minds and brightest ideas” in the aerospace industry.

It has 75 space technology companies in its portfolio, including quantum computer company Arqit Quantum, which itself went public in the US in 2021.

In his latest industry health report, Seraphim said the number of startups attracting investment in the last three months of 2022 was 50 percent higher than the same period a year earlier.

It said this showed “strong interest from entrepreneurs and investors in establishing new space companies in 2022.”

But Seraphim said there was less investment in bigger ‘growth’ companies, with deal value falling 34 per cent to £999m.

The aerospace industry supports nearly 50,000 jobs in the UK. It generated £16.4 billion in revenue in 2020, with a third of that going to exports.