SpaceTech @SpaceTech: "Airbus Hires Goldman for European..."

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Airbus Hires Goldman for European Space Tie-Up to Rival Musk 👉 $AIR.PA (AIRBUS SE) (AIRBUS SE) has hired $GS (Goldman Sachs Group Inc) for advice on an effort to forge a new European space and satellite company that can better compete with Elon Musk’s dominant SpaceX, according to people familiar with the matter. 👉 The talks to create a space and satellite business with French aerospace company $HO.PA (Thales Group) and Italy’s $LDO.MI (Leonardo SpA) are at an exploratory stage and its full portfolio of services hasn’t been set, the people said, asking not to be identified because discussions are confidential. 👉 Rome-based Leonardo has hired $BAC (Bank of America Corp) for the plan, which has been dubbed Project Bromo, some of the people said. Paris-based Thales is also speaking with advisers, the people said. The two companies already have joint ventures on products for satellites and space telecommunications. 👉 Hiring leading M&A advisors represents a concrete step to formalize long-discussed plans for a such a venture. The firms are weighing issues such as cost, complexity, regulatory obstacles, antitrust implications and also the possibilities for bringing various civil and military contracts under such a transaction the people said. 👉 The move to bring in top M&A advisory firms is further evidence of the companies’ attempt to overcome political and financial hurdles to forming a European champion. 👉 SpaceX has established itself as the industry’s preeminent rocket-launch provider, lofting satellites, cargo and people to space for NASA, the Pentagon and commercial partners. Its internet-from-space unit Starlink operates the largest and most advanced satellite network in low-Earth orbit. European firms including Airbus have swallowed significant losses trying to keep up. 👉 The urgency has increased since the reelection of US President Donald Trump, who has put Musk — the SpaceX founder and Tesla Inc. chief who was the largest donor to his election effort — in charge of cutting the federal budget and moderniziing information technology. 👉 European Union leaders are meeting on Monday in Brussels for a retreat to discuss defense spending in the context of Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine and Trump’s demands that the bloc spend more on defense. 👉 Details of the three-way venture are still in flux, and antitrust considerations are likely to shape the structure of any deal, the people said. Leonardo Chief Executive Officer Roberto Cingolani said on Jan. 28 that he met with Airbus counterpart Guillaume Faury to discuss European collaboration and that progress had been made on a new alliance on space and satellites. Read more ❓ www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-02-03/airbus-hires-goldman-for-european-space-tie-up-to-rival-musk ✨ $AIR.PA (AIRBUS SE) (AIRBUS SE) is part of eToro’s @SpaceTech Smart Portfolio, offering the opportunity to invest in companies that act in the Space Exploration, including satellite manufacturing, of several spheres, allocating to some of the most innovative and technological companies in this domain. @SpaceTech is part of eToro's Smart Portfolios series, covering innovative themes and is available from a $500 minimum investment. Some of the companies invested in this portfolio are $LUNR (Intuitive Machines Inc) , $DSY.PA (Dassault Systemes) , $AVAV (AeroVironment Inc.) , $PL (Planet Labs PBC) , $TDY (Teledyne Technologies Incorporated) , $LHX (L3Harris) and $TDG (Transdigm Group Incorporated) . Past performance is not an indication of future results.