New York is the finance capital of the world, and space financing is no exception.
From 2000-2021, New York is a top-2 source of space financing with 18% of space investors in the US. This breaks down into NY as the #1 source for private equity space financing at 39% of the US, #2 source for venture capital space financing at 18% of the US, and #2 source for angel investor space financing at 13% of the US [1].
Empire Space's Business Capital database includes space financing sources from angel investors, venture capital, private equity, and investment banks in most regions of New York State. Activity is focused in New York City, which contains all of the high-space-focus capital sources and most of the moderate-space-focus ones. The next most active regions are the Capital Region, Western NY, and Mid-Hudson, while the least active regions are the North Country, the Mohawk Valley, and Long Island.
New York's high-space-focus financing sources boast ~$10 trillion in assets under management (AUM), while the high- to moderate-space-focus financing sources possess a whopping $25T+ in AUM. These massive AUM figures are mostly contributed to by the investment banks and private equity firms on the list, which are almost entirely in NYC. Nonetheless, these figures demonstrate the scale of the financial players in NY that are active in the space industry.
This database is constructed from publicly available sources, all of which are included in the table below. We are constantly on the hunt for new data sources to better refine our tables.
We encourage you to dive into this data and learn about what’s going on in your region, or find potential sponsors for your organization. This database is still under construction, and we are continuously updating and refining our datasets to present a more accurate picture of the New York space ecosystem. If you have any questions or feedback, please contact us!
[1] BryceTech Start-Up Space 2022 Report
Including 190 organizations and resources across New York State!
High Space Focus Level -- 35 resources
| Organization | Location | Type | Business Focus | Business Stage | Space Involvement | Assets | University | Social Media | AD | SD | Notes ▲ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Space Angels | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Space | Early Growth | Angel investor platform for space-based technology startups | 66 (D) | 26 (D) | Angel arm of Space Capital | |||
| Global Space Ventures | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | Investor in SpaceX and many other space companies | 73 (D) | 28 (D) | Founded by Laetitia Garriott de Cayeux | |||
| Morgan Stanley | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Top 10 in SPAC underwriting volume (2021) | $1.5 trillion | 75 (D) | 27 (D) | Host Morgan Stanley Space Summit in NYC annually | ||
| Barclays Investment Bank | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Aerospace and defense expertise, top 10 in SPAC underwriting volume (2021) | $586 billion | 75 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| Helios Capital | Queens | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | Investor in Spaced Ventures and many other space companies | 30 (D) | 15 (D) | ||||
| Wells Fargo Securities | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | One of most active banks in space financing in US per BryceTech, aerospace and defense expertise | $603 billion | 73 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| Richard Garriott de Cayeux | Manhattan | Angel Investor | Space | Early Growth | Focus on space investing, President of the Explorers Club | 73 (D) | 28 (D) | ||||
| Capt Franz Almeida | Manhattan | Angel Investor | Space | Early Growth | Operates at SP8CEVC | 65 (D) | 26 (D) | ||||
| Dorilton Ventures | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | Investor in several space companies, including HawkEye and Ursa Space Systems | 66 (D) | 26 (D) | ||||
| Lux Capital | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | 16 space startups deals 2000-2021, 6 in 2021, per BryceTech | $4 billion | 74 (D) | 28 (D) | |||
| New Enterprise Associates (NEA) | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | 8 space startup deals 2000-2021 per BryceTech | $20 billion | 75 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| Deutsche Bank | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | One of most active banks in space financing per BryceTech, Top 10 in SPAC underwriting volume (2021) | $1.5 trillion | 73 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| Gravity Management | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Space | Growth | Venture Capital and Public Equity for space technology companies | 75 (D) | 25 (D) | ||||
| Luxembourg Trade and Investment Office - New York (Grand Duchy of Luxembourg) | Manhattan | Economic Development | General | Growth | Sponsor for New York Space Business Roundtable and Space Networking Events, focus on space | 73 (D) | 28 (D) | ||||
| Credit Suisse | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Aerospace and defense expertise and SPAC advisor for BlackSky, top 3 in SPAC underwriting volume (2021) | $1.6 trillion | 75 (D) | 28 (D) | |||
| Google Ventures | Manhattan | Corporate Venture Capital | Technology | Growth | 12 space deals per BryceTech, Investor in SpinLaunch and Orbital Insight, focus on Frontier Tech, investor in O3b | $8 billion | 66 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| BNP Paribas | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | One of most active banks in space financing per BryceTech | $612 billion | 75 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| RRE Ventures | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | 12 space startups deals 2000-2021 per BryceTech, investments in several space startups including Spire and Ursa Space Systems | $2 billion | 73 (D) | 28 (D) | |||
| Canaccord Genuity | Manhattan | Investment Bank | Aerospace and Defense | Growth | Home to an active Aerospace & Defense practice, products include a quarterly sector analysis. | 73 (D) | 28 (D) | ||||
| Citigroup | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | One of most active banks in space financing in US per BryceTech, biggest underwriter for SPACs (2021) | $205 billion | 66 (D) | 26 (D) | |||
| Techstars | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | 23 space startups deals 2000-2021, 16 in 2021, per BryceTech | 75 (D) | 27 (D) | ||||
| Bessemer Venture Partners | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | 9 space startups deals 2000-2021 per BryceTech | $10 billion | 73 (D) | 28 (D) | |||
| GH Partners | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Aerospace and defense expertise | 73 (D) | 27 (D) | ||||
| Laetitia Garriott de Cayeux | Manhattan | Angel Investor | Space | Early Growth | Focus on space investing, Founder of Global Space Ventures | 73 (D) | 28 (D) | ||||
| SP8CEVC | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Space | Early Growth | Space technology and human longevity focused rolling fund in partnership with AngelList | 65 (D) | 26 (D) | ||||
| Seabury Capital Group | Manhattan | Boutique Investment Bank | Aerospace and Defense | Late Growth | Aerospace and defense expertise | 75 (D) | 28 (D) | ||||
| NEA | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | 8 space startups deals (2000-2020) per BryceTech | $24 billion | 75 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| American Industrial Acquisition Corporation (AIAC) | Manhattan | Private Equity | Manufacturing | Exit | Acquired Bradford Space Systems, focuses include Aviation and Aerospace and Defense | 73 (D) | 27 (D) | ||||
| HSBC Holdings | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | 6 space startup deals per BryceTech, investor in O3b | $630 billion | 75 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| Seldor Capital | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Space | Early Growth | Focused on US space technology startups | 71 (D) | 30 (D) | ||||
| Starbridge Venture Capital | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | 8 space startups deals 2000-2021 per BryceTech, significant space focus | 73 (D) | 28 (D) | ||||
| Goldman Sachs | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Second biggest underwriter of SPACs (2021) | $2.2 trillion | 66 (D) | 26 (D) | |||
| Alumni Ventures | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Technology | Growth | One of 10 most active space investors by deal count per Payload | 75 (D) | 28 (D) | ||||
| AIN Ventures | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Space | Early Growth | Focused on defense technology and veteran-led startups | 66 (D) | 27 (D) | ||||
| Space Capital | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Space | Early Growth | Seed stage venture capital firm focused on investments in space-based technology startups, 17 space startup deals 2000-2021, 13 in 2021, per BryceTech | 66 (D) | 26 (D) | The premiere space fund |
Moderate Space Focus Level -- 52 resources
| Organization | Location | Type | Business Focus | Business Stage | Space Involvement | Assets | University | Social Media | AD | SD | Notes ▲ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Upstate Revitalization Initiative (URI) | Albany | NYS Agency | General | Growth | Projects include growing Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) industry in Central NY | $1.5 billion | 108 (D) | 44 (R) | Awarded to Finger Lakes, Central New York, and Southern Tier | ||
| New York Ventures | Albany | NYS Agency | General | Growth | Investor in Ursa Space Systems | 108 (D) | 44 (R) | New York State sponsored venture, manages 3 fully deployed legacy funds including 9 partner funds | |||
| M12 (Microsoft Ventures) | Manhattan | Corporate Venture Capital | Technology | Growth | Investor in AirMap, Airobotics, and Vertical Aerospace | 75 (D) | 27 (D) | ||||
| Pine Street Capital Partners | Albany | Venture Capital | General | Growth | Investor in "Scotia Technology" | 108 (D) | 44 (R) | ||||
| Interplay Venture Capital | Manhattan | Financial Services | Technology | Early Growth | Portfolio includes Launcher | 75 (D) | 28 (D) | ||||
| Paladin Capital | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Cybersecurity | Early Growth | Investor in Ursa Space Systems | 73 (D) | 28 (D) | ||||
| WPMC | West Point | Venture Capital | Software | Early Growth | Investor in aviation startup | West Point | 99 (R) | 39 (R) | |||
| European Investment Bank | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | 3 space startup deals per BryceTech, responsible for only space debt financing in 2021 to Endurosat | $261.26 billion | 73 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| Anthemis | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Fintech | Early Growth | 5 space startup deals 2000-2021 per BryceTech | $1.2 billion | 66 (D) | 26 (D) | |||
| Moelis | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Aerospace and defense expertise | $6.9 billion | 73 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Exit | MUFJ capital has several space investments | $3.1 trillion | 75 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| William Blair | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Aerospace and defense expertise | $31.88 billion | 75 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| Fortress Investment Group | Manhattan | Private Equity | General | Exit | Investor in Omnispace | $53.3 billion | 75 (D) | 28 (D) | |||
| Advantage Capital | Glens Falls | Venture Capital | General | Growth | Investor in "ACT Aerospace" | $3.6 billion | 108 (D) | 44 (R) | |||
| Canaan Partners | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | Investor in Hermeus, Capella, Astra, Kepler Communications, and World View, focus on Frontier Tech | $6 billion | 66 (D) | 28 (D) | |||
| Hudson Valley Startup Fund | New Paltz | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | Investor in "United Aircraft Technologies" | 103 (D) | 41 (D) | ||||
| Arena Investors | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Invests in aerospace, aircraft, and parts | $4 billion | 73 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| Cantor Fitzgerald | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Top 10 in SPAC underwriting volume (2021) | $3.04 billion | 73 (D) | 28 (D) | |||
| Jefferies Group | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Aerospace and defense expertise, top 10 in SPAC underwriting volume (2021) | $60.04 billion | 73 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| Capricon Investment Group | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | 5 space startups deals (2000-2020) per BryceTech | $10 billion | 75 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| Mizuho | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | 6 space startups deals 2000-2021 | $1.96 trillion | 75 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| HBS Alumni Angels NY | Manhattan | Angel Group | General | Early Growth | Have "Defense and Aerospace" sector | 75 (D) | 27 (D) | ||||
| Dorm Room Fund | Manhattan | Venture Capital | General | Early Growth | Investor in "Inversion Space" | 75 (D) | 28 (D) | ||||
| MS Capital Advisors | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Aerospace and defense expertise | 67 (D) | 27 (D) | ||||
| Gaingels | Manhattan | Angel Group | Technology | Early Growth | Investor in "Orbital Insight" and several drone companies | 67 (D) | 29 (D) | ||||
| DeltaPoint Capital Management | Rochester | Venture Capital | General | Growth | Investor in "Horizon Aerospace" | 137 (D) | 56 (D) | ||||
| Great Oaks Venture Capital | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | Investor in "ICON Aircraft" | 73 (D) | 28 (D) | ||||
| Innovation Endeavors | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | 6 space startups deals 2000-2021 per BryceTech | 73 (D) | 27 (D) | ||||
| DreamIt Ventures | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | Focus on SecureTech | 74 (D) | 28 (D) | ||||
| Evercore Partners | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Aerospace and defense expertise | $3.8 billion | 73 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| KeyBanc Capital Markets | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Aerospace and defense expertise | $90 billion | 75 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| General Catalyst | Manhattan | Venture Capital | General | Early Growth | Investor in "Relativity Space" and "Blade" | $8 billion | 66 (D) | 26 (D) | |||
| Raymond James | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Aerospace and defense expertise | $194.4 billion | 73 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| DE Shaw | Manhattan | Corporate Venture Capital | General | Growth | $60 billion | 75 (D) | 27 (D) | ||||
| BofA Securities | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Top 15 in SPAC underwriting volume (2021) | $1.5 trillion | 75 (D) | 28 (D) | |||
| R/GA Ventures | Manhattan | Corporate Venture Capital | Technology | Growth | Portfolio includes SkySpecs | 75 (D) | 31 (D) | ||||
| Arena Investors | Purchase | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Invests in aerospace, aircraft, and parts | $4 billion | 93 (D) | 37 (D) | |||
| WestPark Capital | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Aerospace and defense expertise | $34.41 billion | 73 (D) | 28 (D) | |||
| B Riley FBR | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Top 10 in SPAC underwriting volume (2021) | 73 (D) | 27 (D) | ||||
| JPMorgan Chase | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Top 10 in SPAC underwriting volume (2021), participant in TerreStar per BryceTech | $2.9 trillion | 73 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| Venrock | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | 6 space startups deals 2000-2021 per BryceTech | $4.1 billion | 75 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| UBS | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Top 15 in SPAC underwriting volume (2021), participant in TerreStar per BryceTech | $4.5 trillion | 75 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| First Round | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | 7 space startups deals 2000-2021 per BryceTech | 75 (D) | 28 (D) | ||||
| Box Group | Manhattan | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | Investments in several space startups including Astranis | 66 (D) | 28 (D) | ||||
| RBC Capital Markets | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Aerospace and defense expertise | $1.84 trillion | 65 (D) | 26 (D) | |||
| Westchester Angels | White Plains | Angel Group | Technology | Early Growth | Investor in "United Aircraft Technologies" | 91 (D) | 37 (D) | ||||
| The Carlyle Group | Manhattan | Private Equity | General | Exit | Focus on Aerospace and Government Services | $325 billion | 73 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| Simon School Venture Fund | Rochester | Venture Capital | Technology | Early Growth | Investor in "Satelles" | University of Rochester | 137 (D) | 56 (D) | |||
| ABN AMRO | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | One of most active banks in space financing per BryceTech | $21.74 billion | 73 (D) | 28 (D) | |||
| Houlihan Lokey | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Aerospace and defense expertise | $2.43 billion | 73 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| Stephens | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Aerospace and defense expertise | $12.5 billion | 73 (D) | 27 (D) | |||
| Lazard | Manhattan | Investment Bank | General | Late Growth | Aerospace and defense expertise | $220.9 billion | 75 (D) | 27 (D) |
Low Space Focus Level -- 103 resources