Beck Rings The Bell As Rocket Lab Finally Debuts On Nasdaq

Bobby Barker

It’s been a long journey for Peter Beck and Rocket Lab, one that we at M2 have followed for many years, but the aerospace company finally had its moment of truth this week as it finally made its debut on the U.S. Nasdaq stock exchange. Rocket Lab, which founded by Beck right here on home soil back in 2006, officially became open for public trading, taking over the listing of its shell company Vector Acquistion, at 1.30am on Thursday morning (NZT), a ground-breaking moment was celebrated by Beck and his hundreds of employees in a virtual bell ringing ceremony.

Well after all the hype, it did turn out to be somewhat of an anti-climax, as the company saw a fairly steady days trading, with the final result leaving the company with a valuation of around $5.2b USD. While the company saw share prices slip slightly, from an opening price of $11.58 USD to a final figure of $10.43 USD, it was still a fruitful one of the now US owned company, as they were able to raise an estimated $777m USD from the initial offering. Beck has previously professed that most of this initial capital will go towards Rocket Lab’s proposed Neutron rockets, right now expected to be ready to launch by 2024. It is believed that around 6,000 New Zealanders had already gotten in amongst the action early by investing in Rocket Lab‘s shell company, Vector Acquistion, who Rocket Lab announced a merger with earlier this year. Many of Rocket Lab’s own employees were big winners on the day, as Beck revealed that the listing would turn over 100 of them into millionaires. Beck himself owns 13.1% of his brainchild, which now leaves stock valued at around $676m USD ($955m NZD) as of the end of Thursday’s trading.

But this about more than just the final numbers, as the landmark moment symbolises a new era for Rocket Lab, as they look to continue to build on their status as one of the major players in what is fast become an incredibly crowded industry at the top. Beck himself admitted in an interview with CNBC that he hadn’t been closely following the opening day’s trading, as “at the end of the day, we’re in this for the long term.”

For more on Peter Beck and Rocket Lab, check out our 2019 Man of the Year feature on the enigmatic founder and CEO.