SpaceX has listed on the Nasdaq following the largest IPO in history. The company raised $75 billion from investors, and its valuation reached $1.77 trillion. Elon Musk’s company has thus joined the ranks of the world’s most valuable firms, despite recording a loss of nearly $5 billion last year.
The public offering comprised 555.6 million shares sold at $135 each. Demand significantly outstripped supply, and interest from retail investors was exceptionally high. Analysts point out that SpaceX’s debut will be a test of the so-called “Musk premium” – a phenomenon that for years has allowed investors to value his companies more on the basis of future potential than current financial results.
However, the significance of the IPO extends beyond the company itself. The market views SpaceX’s debut as a dress rehearsal ahead of planned IPOs by other artificial intelligence giants, such as Anthropic and OpenAI. The success of the offering could demonstrate just how keen investors are on companies building their value around breakthrough technologies and ambitious visions for growth.
SpaceX’s position in the space market and the development of its Starlink satellite internet service remain the key arguments put forward by those in favour of a high valuation. The company is currently responsible for the majority of commercial payload launches into orbit, and Starlink has become one of its most important sources of revenue. At the same time, SpaceX is increasingly emphasising its ambitions regarding artificial intelligence and the computing infrastructure of the future.
However, there is no shortage of sceptics. Some analysts believe that the current market capitalisation significantly outstrips the company’s business fundamentals. They point to both high losses and growing competition from entities such as Blue Origin. There are also suggestions that investors are currently buying into a vision of the future rather than current financial results.
The first few days of trading will show whether the market shares this optimism. Regardless of short-term price fluctuations, SpaceX’s debut is already going down as one of the most significant events on global capital markets in recent years.
