Destinus is raising €200M ahead of an IPO. The cruise missile maker wants a €5B valuation.
AI Analysis
Dutch defense startup Destinus is seeking €200M in funding ahead of a planned IPO with a valuation exceeding €5B. The company develops cruise missiles (Ruta series) and interceptor drones (Hornet) currently in use or testing by Ukraine and France respectively. A key strategic partnership with Rheinmetall will bolster production capacity to meet growing European demand.
Key Takeaways
- Destinus is raising €200M at a >€5B valuation, planning an Amsterdam IPO.
- The Ruta cruise missile system is deployed by Ukrainian forces, with an upgraded Block2 version offering a 450km range and 250kg payload.
- The Hornet interceptor drone is undergoing testing with the French Army.
- Destinus acquired Daedalean, a Swiss autonomous pilot startup, to enhance AI and autonomous flight capabilities.
- A joint venture with Rheinmetall (51% Rheinmetall, 49% Destinus) will focus on manufacturing and delivery of cruise missiles and ballistic rocket artillery.
Why It Matters
Destinus's rapid growth and focus on long-range strike capabilities represent a significant development in European defense industrial capacity. The Rheinmetall partnership addresses critical manufacturing bottlenecks and signals a move towards increased self-reliance in European defense production. The deployment of Destinus systems in Ukraine provides valuable operational data and validates the company's technologies in a contested environment.
Destinus is raising €200M ahead of an IPO. The cruise missile maker wants a €5B valuation.
Image by: Destinus
TL;DR
Dutch defence startup Destinus is seeking €200M at a €5B+ valuation ahead of a planned Amsterdam IPO, Bloomberg reports.
Destinus, the Netherlands-headquartered defence startup that manufactures cruise missiles and autonomous drones, is in talks to raise approximately €200 million ahead of a planned initial public offering, Bloomberg reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter. The company is seeking a valuation north of €5 billion based on forecast annual revenues of roughly €500 million.
Founded in 2021 by Mikhail Kokorich, a Russian-born physicist and serial entrepreneur who renounced his Russian citizenship in 2024 in protest against the war in Ukraine, Destinus has grown from a hypersonic aviation research project into one of Europe’s most significant defence industrial companies. The startup employs 750 engineers and specialists across production facilities in the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, and Ukraine, and manufactures more than 2,000 cruise missile systems annually.
The company’s product portfolio centres on the Ruta, a cruise missile system that has been operationally validated and deployed by Ukrainian armed forces since 2023. In early 2026, Destinus unveiled the Ruta Block2, capable of carrying a 250-kilogram payload with a range of up to 450 kilometres. The lineup also includes the Hornet interceptor drone, currently being tested by the French Army, and longer-range autonomous strike platforms under development.
Destinus has raised nearly €400 million to date, including €140 million in convertible instruments and shareholder loans, and a €50 million financing facility from Commerzbank secured in December 2025, the company’s first commercial bank facility. Last year, it agreed to acquire Swiss autonomous pilot startup Daedalean for $225 million, one of Europe’s largest defence tech acquisitions, to strengthen its AI and autonomous flight capabilities.
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The most significant recent development is a joint venture with Rheinmetall, Germany’s largest defence contractor. Rheinmetall Destinus Strike Systems, announced in April, will manufacture, market, and deliver cruise missiles and ballistic rocket artillery, with operations planned for the second half of 2026. Rheinmetall holds 51%, Destinus 49%. The partnership combines Destinus’s platform design and engineering with Rheinmetall’s industrial capacity for qualification and serial production, a model designed to bridge the gap between European defence demand and the continent’s constrained manufacturing base.
The pre-IPO raise, if completed, would position Destinus for a listing on the Amsterdam stock exchange. The global defence-tech sector is attracting capital at an