SpaceX breaks IPO playbook, fixes $135 price ahead of Wall Street discovery – Firstpost

SpaceX has upended one of Wall Street’s most entrenched rituals by fixing its initial public offering price at $135 per share a full week before its listing process formally concludes, marking an departure from standard IPO practice.

The company’s decision effectively removes a key phase in the traditional listing process, where investment banks typically test investor appetite and calibrate demand before arriving at a final price range. Instead, SpaceX has already signalled its valuation expectations, setting the tone for what is set to become the world’s largest IPO.

At the fixed price, SpaceX is targeting a valuation of about $1.75 trillion, with plans to raise roughly $75 billion in primary proceeds. Including a potential greenshoe option, the total fundraising could rise to as much as $86 billion, according to regulatory filings.

Trading is expected to begin on the Nasdaq a day after pricing is finalised on June 11.

Breaking Wall Street’s pricing ritual

In a typical IPO, investment banks engage institutional investors through a “roadshow” process, gathering feedback to establish a price band. SpaceX, however, has effectively inverted that model — using investor demand to validate a price already set by the company.

Market participants say the move underscores Musk’s growing leverage over global capital markets, where investor appetite for his ventures has repeatedly outweighed conventional valuation concerns.

A trillion-dollar valuation

The IPO is expected to value SpaceX at levels that place it among the world’s most valuable listed companies on day one. The company’s valuation — roughly 92 times its annual revenue — has already triggered debate across Wall Street, particularly given its loss-making profile.

SpaceX reported a net loss of $4.94 billion in 2025, even as revenue rose 33 per cent to $18.67 billion, driven by rapid expansion in its launch and Starlink satellite businesses.

Analysts say the absence of comparable listed companies makes pricing particularly complex. Unlike traditional aerospace firms, SpaceX straddles multiple sectors — including defence, telecommunications, and increasingly artificial intelligence infrastructure.

Musk’s control architecture deepens

Beyond valuation, the IPO also cements Elon Musk’s extraordinary control over the company. His special class of shares will reportedly give him around 82 per cent of voting power, ensuring near-total influence over strategic and operational decisions even after listing.

That governance structure has drawn scrutiny from some institutional investors and public pension funds, who have raised concerns over accountability and shareholder influence.

Despite such reservations, investor demand for allocation has remained intense, with major global banks reportedly vying for access to limited shares.

Retail push and investor frenzy

In a notable departure from traditional IPO allocation structures, SpaceX is also expected to allocate as much as 30 per cent of the offering to retail investors — an unusually large proportion for a deal of this scale.

The move reflects Musk’s broader strategy of leveraging his global retail following, while also broadening the shareholder base beyond institutional funds.

Bankers involved in the offering are also said to be focusing heavily on high-net-worth individuals across geographies, rather than relying solely on large asset managers and hedge funds.

A bet on the Musk premium

For investors, the SpaceX IPO is increasingly being framed less as a conventional aerospace bet and more as a wager on Musk’s long-term vision — spanning orbital infrastructure, artificial intelligence data centres, and eventual interplanetary transport.

That narrative, however, has also drawn scepticism.

As SpaceX prepares to kick off its roadshow, the listing is already being seen as a stress test for global equity markets — one that will measure not just appetite for risk, but also the limits of investor faith in founder-driven megacap companies.

With inputs from agencies.