Mynaric, Rocket Lab and the other edge of the sovereignty sword
- 8 hours ago
- 2 min read
Feb. 25, 2026
By Caleb Henry
For space companies, the sovereignty pitch has worked surprisingly well over the past year, especially for U.S. firms willing to invest abroad. Germany, after announcing €35 billion in future space spending, is becoming a prominent market for corporate strategic investments.
Direct-to-cell startup AST SpaceMobile of the U.S. and Vodafone in the U.K. formed a JV that will build a satellite operations center in Germany. California satellite operator Planet Labs landed a €240M deal with the German government and is expanding satellite manufacturing to Berlin. And Finnish radar satellite company Iceye is building a €1.7B constellation with Germany’s Rheinmetall through a JV that includes a future factory in Neuss, Germany. But the recent hold-up of laser terminal builder Mynaric’s sale to Rocket Lab shows there are limits to the friendliness.
The Mynaric acquisition, which was targeted to close in 2025, has stalled out as Germany continues to evaluate its impact. Amid the delay, rising German defense company Rheinmetall has offered a competing bid, a move that could keep Mynaric under domestic control.
U.S. and European space industries remain closely tied, with companies often looking to invest on both sides of the Atlantic for a chance at greater market share. For the past several years, European companies have been especially eager to tap into the U.S. to participate in the Space Development Agency’s military pLEO constellation, which strained domestic supply chains.
Now, as Europe moves to field its own constellations, IRIS2 through the European Union, and a new German constellation through the Bundeswehr, European supply chains are growing in importance. The same sovereignty winds that turbocharged some deals may take the air out of others.
France has been blunt about vetoing space M&A deals based on sovereignty concerns. The most notable recent example is Eutelsat’s rejected ground segment sale to Swedish company EQT. The regulatory split follows French politician Bruno Le Maire’s blockage of satellite analytics company Preligens from acquisition by non-EU players in 2024. Paris-based Safran bought the company that same year.
Should Germany block the Rocket Lab-Mynaric sale, it would mark a continuation of that trend and serve as an important bellwether for German aerospace and defense M&A. Germany is home to many small- to medium-sized enterprises in the space sector that could become attractive investment targets as sovereign demand climbs. Will Germany allow that to happen?
Laser terminals have emerged as a critical technology for proliferated LEO constellations, and are an area Germany leads thanks to decades of investment. Mynaric struggled to scale up its production and went into the German equivalent of Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February 2025. Rocket Lab identified the company as a diamond in the rough. Now it’s up to German regulators to determine who gets to polish it.25 [or, one year ago]. Rocket Lab identified the company as a diamond in the rough. Now it’s up to German regulators to determine who gets to polish it.
