Lilium announces capital raise for up to $250 million

Lilium (listed on NASDAQ as LILM), developer of the all-electric vertical take-off and landing Lilium jet, has announced a capital raise for up to $250 million, with $100 million funded at close. A Form 6-K has been filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission as of May 1, 2023.

This capital raise enables Lilium to continue the development of its Lilium Jet at full pace and the company states that it should cover most of the estimated capital required to achieve first manned flight of the type-conforming aircraft.

Once this development milestone is achieved, which is planned for the second half of 2024, Lilium expects to benefit from the contribution of substantial pre-delivery payments (PDPs) which will help fund its subsequent capital requirements.

Lilium CEO Klaus Roewe stated, “The capital raise announced today marks an important development in our ongoing mission to revolutionize the aviation industry. With this financing, we are excited to continue our development program at full pace. We remain in multiple constructive discussions with existing and potential new investors. We hope to announce further updates soon.”

This announcement follows a funding disclosure in November 2022 during which Lilium secured an additional $119M USD in capital from existing shareholders, new investors, and strategic partners.

Meanwhile, Lilium has expanded into the UK market with eVolare by signing a binding contract which includes pre-delivery payment for up to 20 Lilium eVTOL aircraft. The partnership includes a firm commitment for 10 Lilium Pioneer Edition Jets, with an option to purchase an additional 10 Lilium Pioneer Edition Jets at a later date.

Why it’s important: As one of the leading eVTOL developers in the race to certification and commercial service, securing a long enough financial runway to enable development and testing is critical to the company’s success. First movers in the industry will likely obtain a competitive advantage by simply being first to market and in the consumers’ view, so Lilium has evidently mitigated any deceleration on its path to certification that could have occurred due to lack of funding.