British billionaire Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic will merge with a US investment firm to become the world's first publicly-traded space tourism venture -- with an eye on sending its first clients into space within a year, the group's chief executive said Tuesday. Virgin Galactic and Wall Street investment firm Social Capital Hedosophia will merge, with SCH expected to own up to 49 percent of the combined company, the statement said. Until now, Virgin Galactic has largely been funded by Branson himself, who launched the company in 2004 and has thus far invested more than $1 billion of his personal fortune.
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