Voyager Space Holdings Names President and COO and Board Members

Voyager Space Holdings has confirmed that Matthew Kuta will join the team as President and Chief Operating Officer (COO) and add three world-class leaders to its Board of Directors. As the market’s first vertically integrated NewSpace holding company, Voyager will help enable engineer founded and run subsidiaries to focus on the development of innovative products and services by centralizing shared service functions at the holding company level. The firm’s first in industry model is uniquely tailored to support the growth needs of commercial space companies by offering an alternative solution to traditional private capital models with a longer-term approach as a provider of permanent capital.

Kuta brings to Voyager extensive experience in diverse private equity transactions and angel investing in the growing commercial space industry. Kuta was formerly a member of the Goldman Sachs private equity group investment team. Prior to his private-sector career, Matthew was a distinguished military officer where, as a U.S. Air Force F-15E combat decorated fighter pilot, he earned the Distinguished Flying Cross. Kuta is on the Board of Directors of Space for Humanity and the United States Air Force Academy Endowment. He is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

“Having worked with space companies of all sizes and growth trajectories, the creation of a holding company focused solely on space is exactly what the industry needs,” said Matthew Kuta, president and COO of Voyager. “The commercial space sector is at an exciting inflection point and I’m eager to bring my unique experience to Voyager to make an impact and help further the growth of NewSpace companies.”

Kuta will join global business executive and leading space investment expert Dylan Taylor, who will lead Voyager as Chairman and CEO. Taylor is widely recognized as the most active private investor in commercial space globally and has successfully led multibillion-dollar revenue global businesses over a career that spans 20 years.

“Voyager was founded to solve a critical challenge that NewSpace companies are facing in the current market, which is that traditional private capital models are ill-equipped to serve the needs of today’s NewSpace companies,” said Taylor. “Voyager’s permanent capital model will give these companies the resources they need to be successful. By centralizing critical business functions at the holding company level, these companies, which are typically led by founder entrepreneurs with technical backgrounds, can refocus their efforts on driving innovation and moving their technologies from concept to production. Having Matt and these highly skilled individuals on the team will ensure we are successful in our mission to help growing space companies build scale and overcome the growth challenges they face in the current market.”

In addition to the announcement of Kuta, Voyager announced the addition of three world-class leaders to its Board of Directors: William Shelton, Gabe Finke and Dr. Alan Stern.

Shelton, who retired as Commander of the Air Force Space Command in 2014 as a four-star general, brings extensive knowledge and understanding of space operations and space system acquisition within the Air Force and Department of Defense (DoD) to Voyager’s Board of Directors. Shelton commanded all DoD operations during many internationally significant events including the Chinese anti-satellite test and the North Korean Taepo Dong launch. He is widely considered the space industry’s leading national security expert.

Also joining the Voyager Board of Directors is Gabe Finke who currently holds positions as Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of Ascentris, a real estate private equity firm based in Denver, Colorado. Finke holds an MBA from Harvard Business school and serves on the Georgia Tech Advisory Board and the board of TransitLabs.

Shelton and Finke are accompanied by Dr. Alan Stern, who has more than 30 years of experience in the space industry. Dr. Stern is a leading planetary scientist and an accomplished aerospace consultant. As NASA’s previous chief of space and Earth programs, Dr. Stern directed 93 separate flight missions and led the New Horizon mission that successfully explored the Pluto and Kuiper Belt systems. He serves on the U.S. National Science Board.