Helicopter taxi company Blade to go public via SPAC at near $1 billion valuation

• Blade Urban Air Mobility, the helicopter taxi company founded in 2014, is going public via a merger with a "blank-check" company affiliated with KSL Capital Partners.
• The deal will value Blade at a valuation of about $825 million, according to DealBook, which is well ahead of its 2018 valuation of $140 million.
• The deal will include $400 million in proceeds, including a $125 million infusion along with cash in the SPAC, Dealbook reported, adding that some of the proceeds will fund Blade's ambition of adopting electric helicopters.
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Blade Urban Air Mobility is the latest private company to take advantage of the SPAC craze, according to a report from DealBook.

The helicopter taxi company will make its debut to the public markets via a reverse merger with a "blank check" company backed by KSL Capital, valuing the company at around $825 million, according to the report.

That near $1 billion valuation is well ahead of its 2018 valuation of $140 million. The company has raised $50 million in VC funding since its founding in 2014.

Blade got its footing by operating a network of helicopters that provides short-distance aviation trips for just under $1,000. The company hit its stride when it began offering helicopter flights from Manhattan to the Hamptons, allowing wealthy vacationers to skip the traffic and condense a two to three hour trip to just under an hour.

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Since then, the company has expanded to offering private jet trips from areas like Westchester, NY to Aspen, Colorado and Miami, Florida.

Blade will receive $400 million in proceeds from the SPAC deal, which includes a $125 million infusion along with cash in the SPAC, DealBook reported. Part of those proceeds will be used to fund Blade's ambition of utilizing electric helicopters.

Airbus, an investor in Blade, is in the early stages of developing technology that could make electric helicopters a reality.

Once the deal closes, Blade will trade on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol "BLDE."