Shares in Virgin Orbit (VORB), the satellite start-up that spun off from Virgin Galactic in 2017, closed at 15 cents a share on Tuesday after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

The Long Beach, California-based company will try to sell all of its assets under bankruptcy protection.

The company announced last week that it would cease operations “for the foreseeable future” after it failed to obtain a “lifeline” of funding and laid off most of its staff. Immediately afterwards, the company’s shares fell 40% to 20 cents.

Virgin Orbit sought to become a prominent player in the satellite launch industry, but faced pricing pressure from capitalised rivals. The startup’s business model focuses on launching small rockets that can operate from anywhere in the world.

In January, Virgin Orbit attempted its first launch from the UK, but the mission proved unsuccessful. The rocket and satellites belonging to the UK, US and other governments never made it into orbit.

The failure could not have come at a more difficult time to raise capital. Rising interest rates made the cost of borrowing more expensive.

Founded by Sir Richard Branson, Virgin Orbit went public in 2021 through a merger with a special purpose company, or SPAC. In the last quarter of 2021, shares traded at $10. After that, the shares never really took off and have steadily declined over the past year. Since the beginning of the year, the shares have fallen by more than 90%.