Iceye Secures US$1.5bn Funding Round

Satellite startup Iceye has raised €1bn (US$1.5bn) in a funding round led by US private equity firm General Atlantic in one of Europe’s biggest defence tech capital raisings.

The funding round saw the firm valued at US$10bn (US$11.5bn) – four times the figure after its capital raise in December.

Rafał Modrzewski, Iceye CEO, says the funding will help the company expand “faster than ever before”, at a time when Europe is trying to enhance its position in the space sector – alongside US and Chinese competitors – and utilise satellite technology to create autonomous defence infrastructure.

“Sovereign intelligence from space is entering a new era and the window to build it is now,” Rafał adds.

The fundraising round comes amid investor enthusiasm for Europe’s defence start-ups. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, European governments have been looking to increase military investment, resulting in greater interest from private investment into the sector.

Defence tech customers across Europe

Traditional satellites often struggle to capture images through cloud cover at night but Iceye has developed a system to combat this. The company uses a Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) that uses radar pulses to produce high-definition images images, allowing its satellites to captures images even in low light conditions.

The startup launched its first satellite in 2018 and switched its focus from civilian to military customers in 2022 following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The company provided Kyiv with early intelligence on Russian troop movements.

Iceye currently has more than 70 satellites in operation, with defence clients in Finland, Portugal, Sweden and the Netherlands.

Last month, Poland announced plans for an autonomous space-based intelligence system, following a €200m (US$230.7m) contract agreement with Iceye.

General Atlantic led the funding round that raised €450mn (US$519.08m), while a secondary placement added more than €550mn (US$634.28m). The Qatar Investment Authority also joined the capital raise alongside several Finnish investors including Solidium, Finland’s state investment company.

Sascha Günther, a Managing Director at General Atlantic, says Iceye has “fundamentally redefined earth observation” and demand for space imagery will continue to accelerate.

Enhancing Europe’s technology infrastructure

Iceye reached a profitable status in 2025 after it reported €250m (US$288.3m) in revenues and an additional backlog of orders worth €1.5bn (US$1.73bn).

The startup says it’s on track to build 100 satellites annually by 2028 – double its current production rate.

Rafał says Europe is now a “distant third” in a race led by the US and China to provide space imagery to the military. He adds that it’s imperative for the EU to accelerate its satellite launches, pointing to the success and scale of Elon Musk’s SpaceX.

“We have to respond to what he and the Americans are doing, we have to take bold actions and match their numbers,” Rafał says. Otherwise, “the risk is very serious” that Europeans will end up lagging behind like they currently are in other technology areas.

Discussing the lessons learnt from the wars in Ukraine and Iran, he says “satellites are critical to both, in terms of comms and intelligence”.