$100m · Other round · Transportation · Bristol, UK
Vertical Aerospace, the Bristol-based developer of the Valo electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft, has announced approximately $100m in mixed financing from existing and new investors. The company said the capital would support certification and commercialisation of Valo, including critical design review, certification aircraft, an expanded battery facility and future manufacturing capacity.
The announced package combined $40m from Mudrick Capital Management under an existing convertible-note facility, a $35m registered direct offering of shares and warrants, and a planned $25m preferred-equity issuance through Yorkville Advisors Global. A subsequent company filing records that the $35m offering closed on 11 August, Yorkville paid $24m for preferred shares on 10 August, and Mudrick agreements were signed on 12 August, with the additional-note proceeds partly settled as of 13 August. The headline total therefore remains approximate.
Certification turns financing into milestone capital
Valo is designed to carry four passengers at launch, with a flexible cabin that can expand to six. Vertical gives design targets of up to 100 miles of range and 150 mph cruise speed, and says the aircraft is being engineered for the enhanced safety standards used by the UK Civil Aviation Authority and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency. The company is targeting certification in 2028; those figures and the timetable remain targets until the aircraft completes its approval programme. Vertical positions airlines and specialist operators as customers, with early missions focused on airport links and short regional journeys.
That makes the financing less like growth capital for an already repeatable product and more like milestone capital for a regulated manufacturing programme. Each stage must convert prototype evidence into a certifiable design, then into aircraft that can be built and maintained consistently. The mixed structure also matters: shares and warrants add dilution, preferred equity sits ahead of ordinary shares, and convertible notes add another claim on the company. For prospective operators, capital availability is relevant only insofar as it carries Valo through certification and establishes a credible production system.
From flight demonstration to certification hardware
Vertical entered the raise after a public transition-flight demonstration at the Farnborough International Airshow, where its prototype shifted between vertical and wing-borne flight. That is a meaningful test milestone, but it is not certification or commercial delivery. The company has said it plans to build seven certification aircraft and expand its Energy Centre to increase battery production capacity. The next proof points are therefore concrete: closing and drawing the announced financing, completing critical design review, producing certification hardware and showing that battery and assembly capacity can support the regulator-led test programme.
Sources checked:
Vertical Aerospace financing announcement · Vertical Aerospace H1 filing · Valo press page · Valo product page · Tech.eu Funding Explorer
Image: Vertical Aerospace, via the official Valo press page.
