Swiss satellite manufacturer SWISSto12 has closed a $70 million Series C round. This follows $84.8 million that the company received from ESA and ESA member states, and previous rounds that were around $22 and $30 million. SWISSto12 seems to have spent the money they have gotten wisely, saying that revenue grew to $140 million and that they have $500 million in back orders, with the company aiming to go profitable this year.
I’ve been more than a little bit obsessed with SWISSto12, which has parlayed 3D printing prowess in RF components into a role as a satellite builder. Then the firm grew into providing sovereign communications solutions for nations wishing to have their own capabilities. In a more fractious world where the US is withdrawing from allies, this seems like an excellent approach.
There are few things that make more sense for 3D printing than RF components, with the advantage in mass, part reduction, assembly, and performance being compounded by backlogs in production and little actual expertise in 3D printed RF being available in the market. RF is already the perfect business case for AM, I would have happily churned out antenna for everyone forever. But, SWISSto12 is more ambitious than that.
Global horn and bracket.
SWISSto12 CFO Fredrik Gustavsson said,
“The financial picture at SWISSto12 is robust and primed for global growth. $140 million in revenue for 2025, more than $500 million in customer contracts, and a 110% compound annual growth rate since 2022. These are the signals of an agile business, deploying capital efficiently, and operating at scale in a fast-growing industry. This Series C accelerates us further to meet strong demand from a space, satellite and telecommunications market that’s evolving and growing at pace.”
The company has had CAGR growth of 110% since 2022, on the back of RF component sales and seven orders of its HummingSat geostationary (GEO) satellite. It now also sells antenna to LEO constellation makers helping supply a land grab for space in the sky above and leads in data and intelligence services. The company says that there are now 2,000 Humming-SOTP (Satcom-On-The-Pause) units in the market.
We tracked how the firm expanded into Spain, bought four Additive Industries units, sold a satellite in Japan, bought Phasor’s IP, and made satellites for SES’s constellation. I’m a huge fan of this company; to me, they really show how advanced engineering can let you own an application and then leverage it to broader business success. The company now wants to further scale production to build more satellites and RF components.
Emile de Rijk, SWISSto12 CEO, stated,
“Space is increasingly recognized as essential infrastructure for the global economy. In this expanding market, our solutions across payload and satellite lines are creating significant new opportunities for customers. Our products are supporting exciting new customer missions—from direct-to-device connectivity to media broadcasting, intersatellite data relays or sovereign communications infrastructure—many of which span multiple orbits. This Series C funding round accelerates our ability to execute on this growing demand across any payload, any platform and any orbit.”
ARAMIS flexible payload.
It seems that SWISSto12 is more ambitious still. It will be difficult for the firm to continue to its major lines in payload solutions, ground stations, integration, and building satellites at the same time. Geopolitically, it’s still a darling and one of the few options to affordable communications satellites. Meanwhile, its RF solutions still seem to be a leading choice for many. The firm is also working with CAES (Cobham Advanced Electronic Solutions) and Lockheed to deliver parts to them. There are a lot of balls in the air. Whether they will translate to a lot of satellites in the air remains to be seen. But, given the company’s blistering pace and excellent positioning, the signs point to SWISSto12 continuing its upward trajectory.
Images courtesy of SWISSto12