Richard Branson to cash in part of Virgin Galactic stake

Richard Branson’s Virgin Group said it plans to sell as much as 12% of Virgin Galactic Holdings—the space-tourism venture that made its IPO in New York—to shore up its other travel and tourism businesses. In a regulatory filing Monday, Virgin said it would sell as many as 25m shares in the company, to raise funds to support its portfolio of global leisure, holiday and travel businesses. Those businesses, including a cruise line and two airlines, have been hit hard by a drop in demand amid the coronavirus pandemic. Last month, Virgin Australia, 10%-owned by Virgin, filed for bankruptcy. Another, UK-based Virgin Atlantic, is asking for financial assistance from the UK government. Virgin Galactic, which plans to take passengers to the edge of space to experience several minutes of weightlessness, has been a relative bright spot. Despite a big drop with the rest of the stock market, shares in the company are up 68% this year to date.<br/>