SpaceX raises $85.7 billion in record IPO, making Elon Musk the world’s first trillionaire

A record-shattering debut

SpaceX went public on June 12, pricing 555.56 million shares at $135 apiece and raising $75 billion before the greenshoe. By Monday, underwriters led by Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, and JPMorgan had exercised the overallotment option, purchasing an additional 83.3 million shares directly from the company and lifting the total to $85.7 billion. The debut instantly eclipsed Saudi Aramco’s 2019 listing as the largest IPO in history. Shares closed their first day up 19% at $160.95, pushing the company’s market capitalization above $2 trillion. For Elon Musk, the surge converted his majority stake into a net worth exceeding $1 trillion, making him the world’s first person to breach that threshold.

Retail investors pile in, but flipping rules bite

Platforms like Fidelity and Robinhood allocated a combined 20% of the IPO shares to individual investors, who bought $117.6 million worth of the stock on day one, surpassing the previous retail IPO record set by Coinbase in 2021. Yet brokerage-imposed selling restrictions ranging from 15 to 30 days mean many cannot cash out during the initial frenzy without risking future IPO access.

There is a lot at stake; these products could end up holding a total of more than $10 billion.

Retail enthusiasm was broad: Bloomberg reported that eligible customers at major US brokerages each received at least one share. European retail investors, meanwhile, got about $600 million worth, less than 1% of the total.

Leveraged bets and delayed launches

Hedge funds and asset managers were not bound by the same flipping constraints. One manager told Reuters they planned to sell their $300 million allocation “straight into the open”. But for firms racing to launch leveraged ETFs tied to SpaceX, the day-one window was missed. The SEC and exchanges delayed most launches until Monday, citing concerns about complicating the debut. Defiance ETFs sidestepped the restriction by relaunching an existing actively managed product with 2x daily exposure, having acquired shares at the IPO price. Its shares soared as much as 56% intraday before a trading halt.

Index inclusion wave forces rethink

SpaceX is on a fast track for inclusion in the Nasdaq 100, a move that will channel billions in passive investment flows into the stock. FTSE Russell and MSCI are set to add the company on June 26 and June 29, respectively, with Jefferies estimating $2.68 billion in FTSE-linked inflows alone. That rapid index entry, combined with a relatively small float and a valuation above $2 trillion, has prompted warnings about outsized volatility.

The IPO is the headline, but the real story is about index methodology.

The S&P 500, for now, is holding off, a decision that underscores how index providers are weighing rules against market realities.

AI proxy and the road ahead

Analysts are framing SpaceX not merely as a launch company but as an artificial intelligence play, given its ties to Elon Musk’s xAI venture.

While most obviously a space-related company, it is also being seen as something of an AI proxy given its exposure to xAI.

Meanwhile, Musk has projected $1 trillion in revenue by 2030, a steep climb from the $18.7 billion reported in 2025. The stock rose another 14% on Monday, closing at $184, but critics note that the loss-making firm faces mounting regulatory scrutiny and intensifying competition in the commercial space sector. The rally’s sustainability will hinge on execution, not just imagination.

1. Jun 12, 2026SpaceX debuts on Nasdaq; shares close 19% up at $160.95
2. Jun 15, 2026Greenshoe exercised, raising total to $85.7bn; stock jumps 14% to $184
3. Jun 26, 2026FTSE Russell adds SpaceX to its indexes
4. Jun 29, 2026MSCI adds SpaceX to its indexes