Warminster-headquartered Capital for Colleagues, an investment vehicle focused on opportunities in the Employee-Owned Business (`EOB’) sector, has announced that its investee company, Bright Ascension Limited (`Bright Ascension’) has now concluded a £2.25 million funding round.
Bright Ascension is an industry-leading space-software technology provider, offering unique off-the-shelf software products and solutions for the delivery of space-based services, both on spacecraft and on the ground.
Based in Dundee, Bright Ascension completed the £2.25 million funding round with an investment of £750,000 from Scottish Enterprise supplementing the £1.5 million raised in the funding round led by C4C in October 2023.
The Scottish Enterprise investment is into loan notes convertible into ordinary shares in Bright Ascension which bear interest at the rate of 10 per cent per annum. The £1.5 million raised in October 2023, including an investment of £750,000 from C4C itself, has now been re-classified into Bright Ascension loan notes on the same terms.
Bright Ascension intends to use the funds to accelerate the final stages of development and market release of its HELIX products, which offer a comprehensive end-to-end space software solution, covering the entire mission lifecycle. As previously announced, HELIX has been selected to form the foundation for the three–four-year OS2-VOLT mission, led under the ESA ScyLight Programme. The OS2-VOLT mission is led by another C4C investee company, Craft Prospect Limited.
Bright Ascension has also announced that John Baughn, who has over 40 years’ experience in managing space operations and telecommunications organisations, has been appointed as the Executive Chair of the Bright Ascension Board.
Commenting, Alistair Currie, Chief Executive of Capital for Colleagues, said, “We are extremely pleased to see this enhancement of the Bright Ascension team and further endorsement of Bright Ascension’s technology and commercial strategy. Bright Ascension is now positioned to accelerate the final stages of development and market release of its innovative HELIX products.”
Pictured above: Image by Tayeb MEZAHDIA from Pixabay
