BETA Technologies, a maker of electric aircraft, is determined to raise up to $825 million through its upcoming initial public offering (IPO), despite the ongoing U.S. government shutdown. According to the documents submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Wednesday, the company plans to issue 25 million shares at a price range of $27 to $33 per share. If the pricing settles at the upper end of the range, and accounting for the number of shares in circulation listed in the documents, BETA would achieve a market capitalization of $7.2 billion. In a previous funding round in 2022, the company was valued at $2.4 billion, indicating a rise in valuation compared to that round.

As BETA embarks on its IPO marketing, the federal government shutdown has halted the SEC’s ability to declare the IPO registration effective. In light of these circumstances, some companies are opting to move forward with their listings amid a lack of regulatory clarity and extended timelines. On October 9, the SEC released guidance allowing IPO applicants to list a price range instead of a fixed price in their filings; however, there is still a mandatory 20-day waiting period before registration can take effect, posing certain risks to companies.

Trade terms indicate that the IPO price is expected to be finalized on November 3. The documents reveal that AllianceBernstein, BlackRock, entities affiliated with Chuck Davis, the Co-CEO of Stone Point Capital and a member of BETA’s board, GE Aerospace, and accounts managed by AllianceBernstein Kaufmann Fund have expressed intentions to collectively purchase up to $300 million worth of shares.

For the first half of this year, BETA reported revenues of $15.6 million and a net loss of $183 million. In the same period of 2024, the company's revenues stood at $7.6 million with a net loss of $137 million. The document also notes that BETA was founded in 2017, headquartered in South Burlington, Vermont, and is actively developing electric aircraft for both passenger and defense applications. Earlier this year, the company’s ALIA conventional take-off and landing aircraft completed a flight from the Hamptons to New York's Kennedy International Airport and made its debut at the Paris Air Show. Additionally, both the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the U.S. military have conducted test flights of BETA's aircraft.

「The arrival of electric aviation is unstoppable,」 stated CEO Kyle Clark in a letter to founders. 「We believe electric aviation will lower flight costs, enhance safety, expand aviation applications, and achieve balanced development with the environment.」 The documents show that post-IPO, Clark is projected to retain 63.2% of the voting rights and will hold all of BETA's outstanding Class B shares. FMR LLC is expected to own 12.8% of the Class A shares, while Amazon.com Inc.’s Climate Pledge Fund will hold 5.6% of the Class A shares. Excluding potential cornerstone investments, GE Aerospace would hold 9% of the Class A shares, and the affiliated firm of Davis would own 7% of the Class A shares.

In September, GE Aerospace agreed to invest $300 million, establishing a strategic partnership to jointly develop hybrid turbine generators. The IPO is being led by Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs as the lead underwriters, and the company plans to list on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol 「BETA.」