Poland is investing in space technologies. "The market is growing at a rate of $2 billion per year."

• Nearly half a billion in revenue, 700 employees, and a portfolio of contracts from around the world – that's the current balance sheet of Iceye, the Polish-Finnish leader in Earth radar observation. The company was founded 10 years ago by two students – Rafał Modrzewski from Poland and Pekka Laurila from Finland.
• Vinci, a fund owned by BGK, has just decided to make a capital investment in Iceye. This brings the Polish development bank in line with other investors in the company, such as the largest investment firm, BlackRock, the European Investment Bank, and the Finnish state-owned Solidium Oy.
• For BGK, the investment is part of a completely new strategy to restart the Polish economy. For Iceye, it's securing funding to implement its ambitious growth plans.
• The "Industry for Defense" conference will take place on October 15th at the International Congress Center in Katowice. It will be a meeting of leaders from industry, science, and government, dedicated to building Poland's resilience and defense capabilities in the face of new geopolitical and technological challenges. Register HERE

The Vinci fund, belonging to the BGK group, has become an investor in Iceye , a Polish-Finnish leader in Earth radar observation.

Founded in 2015 by two students from Poland and Finland, Iceye now owns and operates the world's largest constellation of micro-satellite observation systems equipped with synthetic aperture radar (SAR). To date, the company has successfully launched 54 satellites—both for our constellation and for our customers.

Iceye technologies are already used by the governments of many countries such as the United States, Brazil and Japan, and this year the armed forces of the Netherlands and Portugal also signed contracts for the supply of satellites.

In May, the Polish Ministry of National Defense signed an 860 million PLN contract with Iceye for the purchase of three radar satellites, with the option to increase the contract to six units. The first Polish military satellite is scheduled to be launched into orbit later this year.

BGK's first investment in space technology. The market is growing at a rate of $2 billion annually.

To date, investors such as BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, venture capital firms OTB Ventures, and Seraphim Space Investment Trust have embraced Iceye's potential. The project has also received funding from public entities such as the European Investment Bank and Solidium Oy, a Finnish state investor.

Now, Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego joins this list of investors, investing over PLN 40 million in Iceye through its Vinci fund.

"Our investment in Iceye means that Poland is entering a completely new segment of the satellite industry at an early stage. High-quality satellite data is used both in defense and intelligence operations, as well as in preventing and resolving the effects of natural disasters. The market for monitoring the Earth from space is growing at a rate of $2 billion annually, comprised of orders from governments and the private sector," says Bartosz Drabikowski, CEO of Vinci, a fund within the BGK group that supports the development of innovative technologies.

"We are entering this promising market with great enthusiasm, seeing it as a development opportunity for Poland, but also an opportunity to multiply Vinci's capital. Just after the second-ever Polish space flight, we are announcing our first investment in space technologies," adds Vinci's CEO.

As Rafał Modrzewski said in a recent interview for WNP, the potential of this market is only just being discovered, but the current, complex geopolitical situation means that interest – from both government and private clients – is growing very quickly.

"The entire space and analytics market is relatively new, both for investors and users. For government clients, it's a completely undiscovered world," Rafał Modrzewski, co-founder and CEO of Iceye, told WNP.

Now the president and co-founder of Iceye, notes that the investment made by Vinci is a step into the future that will serve Poland.

"We are extremely pleased that the BGK Group recognizes the strategic need to support investments in space technologies, whose importance for security and the global economy is constantly growing. New Space companies like Iceye, thanks to their dynamism and innovation, are radically changing the face of the space industry," commented Rafał Modrzewski.

BGK launches investment offensive. Dual-use technologies are the future.

Vinci is investing over PLN 40 million in Iceye, not ruling out its continued involvement in this rapidly growing company in the future.

"By signing an agreement with Iceye, through Vinci, Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego is implementing its strategy for 2025-2030, which aims to support innovative Polish technologies. The solutions it offers are a good example of dual-use technology. Iceye satellites enable data delivery in areas such as agriculture, crisis management, and defense," says Mirosław Czekaj, President of BGK.

Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego is one of the largest banks in the country, fully controlled by the state. Its balance sheet total is nearly PLN 270 billion and equity capital is approximately PLN 41 billion, ranking it fourth among domestic banks.

However, as Jarosław Dąbrowski, a member of the management board of BGK, explained in a recent interview for WNP , the bank is also one of the largest investment funds in the country, as it already has nearly PLN 10 billion of exposure to capital investments.

"Our main focus is to restart the engines of growth by stimulating innovation. (...) What we need most right now are dual-use technologies – both civilian and military. This is a clear priority today, and funding is available. Satellites, drones, radars, reconnaissance and communications systems… All of this should be a very important branch of Polish industry. Modern, lightweight, and scalable," said Jarosław Dąbrowski, announcing further investments in laser and satellite technologies.

BGK is already an investor in WB Electronic, Poland's largest manufacturer of modern defense technologies. Now, through its Vinci fund, the bank is further engaging in Iceye.

Doubling profits and investing in production capacity. Iceye has ambitious plans.

Iceye skillfully develops its business, strongly focusing on dual-use, meaning the dual application of its technologies, both civilian and military. The company's founders learned this lesson from their difficult beginnings.

Iceye's history, as evidenced by the company's name ("ice eye"), began with SAR satellites, primarily intended to monitor changes in the Earth's ice sheet. The first customer was Exxon, which wanted to use the satellites to monitor the ice sheet along the northern route, which the company planned to use to transport oil. Then Russia annexed Crimea and was hit with such sanctions that trade along this route was halted, and Iceye lost a powerful customer.

That's why the company's founders quickly decided to change their business model and, alongside the civilian business leg, create a military one, which is currently responsible for 80-90 percent of orders.

"Today, we clearly see the advantages of dual-use technologies, which, in addition to military applications, also have commercial markets. Thanks to this, technological capabilities can be maintained in peacetime not only from military budgets," Rafał Modrzewski explained in an interview with WNP.

Last year, the company generated €103 million in revenue, and the plan is to double that figure this year. Governments in countries such as the US, Brazil, and Japan are already using Iceye satellites for defense and disaster relief purposes.

Iceye also plans to expand its production capacity to meet the growing global demand for Earth observation satellite systems and satellite data. The Polish subsidiary is a key pillar of the company. Warsaw is home to the Satellite Operations Center, responsible for global support of the Iceye constellation, the satellite planning team, and the research and development laboratory, where key components are manufactured. Work is underway to further expand the capabilities of the Polish office.