Poised to be the largest initial public offering (IPO) of all time, SpaceX’s IPO is expected to break with tradition through a reworked roadshow and an outsized allocation to retail investors. If the company does go public, it is expected to raise between $40 and $80 billion. China’s Alibaba holds the current record for the largest IPO with $22 billion raised in 2014.
Bloomberg reports that the company is seeking a $1.75 trillion valuation with a listing in June. Morgan Stanley, Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, and Goldman Sachs are the banks leading the offering, which are projected to receive $400 million from fees.
But in 2020, Elon Musk promised not to leave out the retail investor. “We will probably IPO Starlink, but only several years in the future when revenue growth is smooth & predictable. Public market does *not* like erratic cash flow haha. I’m a huge fan of small retail investors. Will make sure they get top priority. You can hold me to it,” Musk said. Starlink is a division of SpaceX.
Musk posted “stand by me” Tuesday on X, the day before reports emerged that SpaceX had filed paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). CNBC reports that the billionaire is considering reserving as much as 30% of SpaceX’s IPO for individual investors. Typically, retail investors are allocated about 5 to 10% of shares. Musk also appears to be breaking from the competitive IPO bank selection process by turning to trusted relationships.
Chairman of Investment Banking at Morgan Stanley, Michael Grimes, is expected to lead the IPO. He’s worked with Musk before, helping him take Tesla public in 2010 and Twitter private in 2022. Reporting says that Musk submitted a confidential filing, which allows the company to submit its financials to the SEC for regulatory review before the public and prospective investors are able to view. At least fifteen days before the IPO roadshow, SpaceX will have to release a public filing, where investors will be able to review the company’s financials, business model, and key risks.
The Wall Street Journal reports Musk will do something nontraditional with the roadshow. Normally, executives hit the road to meet investors, but Musk wants investors to travel to SpaceX, where they can view its manufacturing facilities and potentially witness rocket launches.
Musk’s primary goal for SpaceX is to make human consciousness multi-planetary. He hopes to eventually establish a colony on Mars.
SpaceX owns Starlink, and as of February 2, xAI. SpaceX is planning to construct data centers in space using SpaceX rockets to build out the structure. The power generated from these orbital data centers could help satisfy the enormous energy demands of xAI, depending on whether the technology operates as Musk predicts. Musk has previously stated, “If we harness even a billionth of the Sun’s power for AI/robotics, it will be a 1000X return.”
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