Mubadala, affiliates disclose stakes in Virgin Galactic

Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Company and its affiliates have disclosed their holdings in Virgin Galactic, according to a US securities filing on Friday.

The shares were bought for investment purposes, the sovereign wealth fund said in the regulatory filing.

Mubadala now holds 14.9m shares, or 7.1 per cent in the space tourism company. Its affiliates Aabar Space, Aabar Investments and International Petroleum Investment Co. each own 7.1 per cent stakes in Virgin Galactic.

The disclosures come after Virgin Galactic priced 23.6 million shares at $19.50 each earlier this week.

The funds were raised even as the company announced a delay in plans to carry founder Richard Branson into space until early 2021 – a milestone flight seen as the start of the Virgin Galactic’s tourism business.