UK’s OneWeb secures $300m from South Korean business giant Hanwha
UK satellite firm OneWeb has bagged a $300m investment from one of South Korea’s largest business groups.
Hanwha, a conglomerate which deals in businesses ranging from retail to explosives, has also secured an 8.8 per cent stake in the satellite company.
The investment suggests that OneWeb could be teetering on a $3.4bn valuation, according to the Financial Times – just nine months after being scooped out of bankruptcy by the UK government and India’s Bharti Global.
The South Korean business heavyweight is investing through its defence systems division Hanwha Systems, which snapped up a UK satellite antenna startup Phasor Solutions last year.
OneWeb said that the investment will bring “advanced technology capabilities” to the firm.
The British satellite firm aims to deploy a constellation of some 648 satellites to provide worldwide broadband services.
The firm also received another $500m injection from Bharti Global in late June, which made the Indian business giant the startup’s largest shareholder.
Bharti has invested around $1bn in the British startup so far, while the UK government has pumped $500m into the business.
The latest investment brings the total capital backing OneWeb has received up to $2.7bn.