Air taxi pioneer Volocopter says it expects to remain independent until after its first commercial flight in 2024 despite occasional interest from potential suitors, with the possibility listing on the stock market next year.
Air taxi pioneer Volocopter GmbH says it expects to be independent until after its first commercial flight in 2024 despite occasional interest from potential suitors, with the possibility of listing on the stock market next year.
According to CEO Dirk Hoke, starting passenger services in time for the Paris Olympics could give the German startup a lead over its rivals and help it be valued from 10 billion euros (10 billion euros). $2.2 billion) or more.
“Our shareholders have invested with the goal of an IPO,” Hoke said at the launch of the so-called vertiport near Paris, where tests will be conducted before the game. “
Volocopter has avoided listing although many of its closest rivals have gone that route, with Vertical Aerospace Ltd. UK and fellow German startup Lilium NV among a series of flying taxi companies to trade on New York’s Nasdaq exchange following a merger with a blank check mark of the companies.
Hoke says that Volocopter, which has so far raised only cash through a series of funding rounds, is seen as attractive by suitors looking for an easy path into a market that could become one of them. the most lucrative markets in the aviation industry if it grows as rapidly as forecast.
“We always have access,” said the CEO. “We prefer independence now. We want agility and we want to bring models to market. “
Tesla model
Chief Commercial Officer Christian Bauer, a former Daimler executive, said Volocopter will also be able to tap into the potential of eVTOL to be as revolutionary as Tesla Inc. as their size increases.
“Tesla started with a two-seater because the battery technology wasn’t there and now they’re the most valuable car brand in the world,” he said. That’s where we want to be.”
The startup financing at Volocopter, with almost 700 employees, has surpassed 500 million euros and the company is still raising cash, tapping $182 million from Saudi Arabia’s Neom, which is building a city futures on the Red Sea, and a fund backed by Chinese automaker Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co.
“The best time for an IPO would be when we have the commercial license, when we have our first revenue, when we have our first profit,” Bauer said. though it could be held as early as 2025, he said.
First published date: November 11, 2022, 6:06 PM IST
