Space Protection Initiative

Proposal – Stopping Space Debris Increasing By Using Space Debris Removal Insurance Bonds

Space sustainability is fast becoming one of the defining issues of the 21st century. With thousands of defunct satellites and orbital fragments posing increasing risks, space debris threatens not only future exploration but also vital services such as communications, navigation, and climate monitoring. The Space Protection Initiative, originally championed by the 695th Lord Mayor as a thematic focus for the City and supported by Z/Yen during that term, continues to be actively developed and led by Z/Yen today.

Space observation and infrastructure already contribute to 40% of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, particularly those involving climate action, innovation, and sustainable consumption. As Earth’s orbital commons come under strain, coordinated financial and regulatory frameworks are urgently needed to protect this vital environment.

At the heart of the initiative is the proposal to develop Space Debris Removal Insurance Bonds (SPADRIBs) - surety-style financial instruments inspired by models used in decommissioning oil rigs and mines. These bonds aim to make space operators financially responsible for clearing debris, creating economic incentives for cleaner missions.

This slide deck summarises the situation as of October 2024.

On 5 October 2023 “The 695th Lord Mayor’s Space Protection Initiative” was launched at the International Astronautical Congress (IAC 2023) of the International Astronautical Foundation as a combined technology and financial services initiative to use space debris performance bonds and other financial instruments to keep space ‘clutter free’ in aid of aviation, maritime, telecommunications, and defence resilience, as well as supporting attainment of 40% of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

· Aim: To stop the increase in space debris by deploying Space Debris Removal Insurance Bonds.

· Target: To get the G7/G20 to make purchasing such SPADRIBs, or similar financial guarantees, as a condition of launch.

The initiation document was: In-Orbit Servicing & Insurance Markets: A Symbiotic Approach ;Professor Michael Mainelli, Charles Vermont, Pat Mathewson, Morgane Lecas, David Eagleson, Hugh Selka; International Astronautical Congress (IAC 2023), International Astronautical Foundation (October 2023).

First Year Assessment 2023-2024

During 2023-2024 SPADRIBs were on the Lord Mayor’s agenda in 25 country visits, widely discussed by the World Economic Forum both at Davos and in London, with the European Space Agency in the Netherlands, and the subject of numerous webinars, meetings, colloquies, reports, and press articles. Mark Garnier MP (24 April 2024) said – “Other ideas are coming out of the City that would be good to get behind. Professor Michael Mainelli, who is now Lord Mayor of London, has been promoting a space protection initiative that looks at the further purchase of space debris retrieval [sic] insurance bonds to go on space flights to ensure that any debris could be recovered in the event of a satellite going out of service. Perhaps they could be called space junk bonds.”

A broad coalition of organisations have been involved ranging from people in insurance and reinsurance, to policy makers, launch companies, data companies, telecoms firms, and space technologists, leading to letters of support. This slide deck summarises the situation after the first year, October 2024:

2024.10-695th-Lord-Mayor-Space-Protection-Initiative-v1.0.

Two achievements stood out:

· A letter from AHJ Miller representing six global insurers offering ‘an invitation to treat’ for up to US$500m per operator so long as “a spacecraft company clearly demonstrates it can de-orbit third party space debris” and “the agencies regulating space launch make SPADRIBs mandatory”.

· At the Lord Mayor’s Science & Innovation banquet on 5 June 2024 Baroness Patricia Scotland, Secretary General of the Commonwealth of Nations, pledged the support of the 56 nations to the SPADRIBs as part of their launch of the Commonwealth Space Collaboration Initiative, and the publication of “CommonSpace: Making Space Work For All”.

Post-Initiative Efforts

The Space Protection Initiative was moved operationally over to Z/Yen to make way for the 696th Lord Mayor’s programme, “Unleashing Growth”. The Z/Yen placeholder is here - https://www.zyen.com/research/research/risk-mitigation/space-protection-initiative/ - to be built upon.

Of note has been the publication of academic research and economic modelling:

Indigo Brownhall, Daniel Kaffine, Darrell Kilpatrick et al., “Bonds Improve Post Mission Disposal Compliance and the Sustainability of Low Earth Orbit”, 24 March 2026, preprint (Version 1) available at Research Square -https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9138493/v1

“Results show that bonds of $200k per satellite can reduce the mass of derelict satellite per year by more than one-third and increase welfare by up to 27%. Bonds greater than $1 million exhibit diminishing marginal returns. We also examine partial bond adoption and market leakage and find that a bond that only covers 20% of the global market can still achieve meaningful derelict reductions and space sustainability improvements. Broader participation improves both environmental and economic welfare outcomes.”

Events since November 2023 include:

19 March 2025, Farnborough International Space Show, Space Debris Retrieval Insurance Bonds & Remote Sensing For Smart Cities, Charles Vermont, Simon Mills, AHJ Miller, Z/Yen Group

23 April 2025, London Space Finance, Space Debris & Space Protection Initiative, Professor Michael Mainelli, Z/Yen Group

15 September 2025, Aircraft Builders Council (Austin, Texas), Aircraft Builders Council Annual Conference - Space Debris - “To Infinity & Beyond: But Who’s Going To Clean Up The Rubbish?”, Professor Michael Mainelli, Z/Yen Group

13 January 2026, (Hong Kong) Shaping The Future Of Space Insurance: Opportunities In Risk & Finance, Professor Michael Mainelli, Adam Janikowski, Z/Yen Group, BDJ Capital Limited

14 January 2026, Orion Astropreneur Space Academy (OASA - Hong Kong), Commercialising and Sustaining Space: The Final Rubbish Dump - Bonding For Better Orbits?, Professor Michael Mainelli, Z/Yen Group

Relevant articles include:

11 April 2025Are SPABRIBs the solution to space debris? Insurers think so, Seradata

25 February 2026, Who Will Pay To Clean Up Space Junk?, EARTH.ORG

Most encouraging in 2026 has been a trip to Hong Kong in January 2026 where two seminars and several meetings led to adoption of space debris as a key area for Hong Kong’s wide move (banking, insurance, data, risk management, etc.) into promoting a space industry. The Chief Executive Policy Unit commitment led to these announcement articles:

相關傳媒報道連結：

香港商報：特首政策組舉辦圓桌會議研討本港發展太空經濟機遇與路徑

https://lnkd.in/gXFa__Xy

文匯報：商太空經濟港定位專家聚焦三戰略機遇

https://lnkd.in/gM4jaedD

大公報：特首政策組探討太空經濟機遇

https://lnkd.in/gD2qfJtK

香港經濟日報：港拓新太空經濟數據成核心

https://lnkd.in/gE32AhUe

信報財經新聞：特首政策組研「太空經濟」

https://lnkd.in/gfTh9_5K

The Standard: HK URGED TO FOCUS ON DATA IN GLOBAL SPACE ECONOMY

https://lnkd.in/gf8Eh2Yc

The Standard (editorial): Hong Kong’s celestial ascent: from space pliers to a thriving astro-economy

https://lnkd.in/g53_f3_H

SCMP: Hong Kong eyes slice of booming ‘NewSpace’ economy as professional services hub

https://lnkd.in/gaHjd5BF

China Daily HK: HKSAR to align with State plans for space economy

https://lnkd.in/gD29c-Sm

Looking Ahead

Z/Yen is representing the Initiative at two forthcoming events:

· London Space Finance on 30 April 2026 at DLA Piper.

· APRIM (Asia-Pacific Regional International Astronomical Union Meeting), Hong Kong, 4 to 8 May - https://aprim2026.org/ - bookings taken already for 1,000 people.

Returning to the invitation to treat letter, the clause “a spacecraft company clearly demonstrates it can de-orbit third party space debris” may be fulfilled in 2026. Two projects of relevance:

Astroscale ELSA-M: In collaboration with OneWeb, this mission uses a ‘tug’ satellite to capture multiple, broken satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO). It aims to demonstrate a repeatable, commercial service that can remove 3 to 4 satellites per mission. Planned launch date claims still say 2026.
ClearSpace-1: Funded primarily by the European Space Agency (ESA), this mission will launch on an Arianespace Vega-C rocket to rendezvous with, capture, and deorbit a large piece of space debris (a Vespa payload adapter). It is the first mission to target an unprepared, uncooperative object. Earlier reports had indicated a 2025 or 2026 launch, but the timeline has been updated to 2029.

A successful space debris removal mission provides an opportunity to position the final goal as “the agencies regulating space launch make SPADRIBs mandatory”.

The insurance industry has signalled conditional backing. In 2023, a collective 'invitation to treat' was issued offering up to USD 500 million per operator for third-party debris removal, contingent on regulatory and technical benchmarks. Political interest is rising, with MP Mark Garnier suggesting such instruments be dubbed “space junk bonds”.

Since 2023, engagement has deepened. Key milestones include a Mansion House coffee colloquy in December 2023, a Davos panel in January 2024, and the Lord Mayor’s Science & Innovation Banquet in June 2024, where Professor Manahel Thabet launched the Commonwealth Space Collaboration Initiative, supported by all 56 Commonwealth nations. The initiative was further bolstered by a World Economic Forum workshop entitled “Financial Space Debris Mechanisms.”

Our goal is to secure international regulatory endorsement, ultimately making SPADRIBs, or equivalent mechanisms, a licensing requirement for future launches.

We welcome engagement from funders, foundations, insurers, sovereign bodies, and private sector firms aligned with ESG, sustainable finance, or innovation in orbital infrastructure. A letter of support template is available upon request.