Rocket Lab Corporation (NASDAQ: RKLB) has cleared a major regulatory hurdle in its proposed acquisition of Iridium Communications Inc., announcing that the U.S. Hart-Scott-Rodino antitrust waiting period expired at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on August 12, 2026.
The Long Beach, California-based space company simultaneously filed a Registration Statement on Form S-4 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to register the Rocket Lab securities that will be delivered to Iridium shareholders as equity consideration at closing.
The Form S-4 filing represents a significant procedural step toward completing the transaction, though the registration statement has not yet become effective and securities described within it cannot yet be sold.
On August 10, 2026, Rocket Lab and Iridium jointly filed applications with the Federal Communications Commission seeking consent to transfer control of Iridium’s licenses and authorizations to Rocket Lab.
Sir Peter Beck, founder and CEO of Rocket Lab, said: “Filing the Form S-4 and the FCC applications and receiving U.S. antitrust clearance are all major steps for us in the execution timeline for the Iridium acquisition.”
Beck added: “These milestones continue to pave the way toward the completion of this transformative transaction that will position Rocket Lab to accelerate our future into space applications.”
On the financing side, Rocket Lab previously entered into a commitment letter with Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, Wells Fargo Securities LLC, and Deutsche Bank AG New York Branch for a 364-day senior secured bridge term loan facility totaling $3.6 billion.
The company intends to replace that bridge facility through a combination of permanent debt and equity financing, reducing its overall cost of capital ahead of the deal’s close.
As part of that strategy, Rocket Lab and Iridium are seeking amendments to Iridium’s existing term loan credit facility, which carried an outstanding balance of $1.775 billion as of June 30, 2026, with the aim of keeping that facility in place post-acquisition.
Rocket Lab also announced a new at-the-market equity program that replaces its May 2026 program, carrying forward unsold offering amounts from the prior program to further chip away at remaining bridge loan commitments.
Rocket Lab describes itself as an end-to-end space company whose satellites and components have powered more than 1,700 missions in Earth orbit, as well as deep-space exploration of the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
The company’s launch portfolio includes its industry-leading Electron and HASTE small-lift rockets, with the reusable Neutron medium-lift rocket currently in development as the next major platform in its arsenal.
