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Business·G Space·Evidence-backed gain·Published 2026-07-17

Musk’s SpaceX courts retail investors as it aims for record-breaking stock market flotation

SpaceX will kick off the marketing for its highly anticipated stock exchange debut by hosting an event in June for 1,500 retail investors, as executives set out to convince buyers that the aerospace to artificial intelligence group should be valued at $2tn. In an unusual move, the company has earmarked a large portion of its shares – potentially up to 30% – for non-professional, non-institutional investors, banking on the popularity of its chief executive, Elon Musk, to help it raise $75bn (about £56bn) in what…

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Musk’s SpaceX courts retail investors as it aims for record-breaking stock market flotation
The quick read

On 7 April 2026 The Guardian reported SpaceX plans to market what is expected to be the largest IPO in history, aiming to raise $75bn at a $2tn valuation after its February merger with xAI. The company scheduled analyst briefings from 7 June and a 1,500-person retail investor event on 11 June, earmarking potentially up to 30% of shares for non-professional investors.

The retail-heavy structure matters because it would reverse the typical exclusion of smaller investors from private-company debuts and tests whether popularity of Elon Musk can support a valuation increasingly tied to xAI. Uncertainty remains because public information is limited to revenue not profits, xAI is described as a laggard, and the newly stated goal of datacentres in space is described as unproven and fraught with hurdles.

Main points
  • SpaceX set a summer roadshow starting 7 June for analysts from 21 banks, followed by a retail investor event on 11 June for 1,500 retail investors.
  • The company retained Morgan Stanley, Bank of America, Citigroup, JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs to lead the fundraising.
  • SpaceX generated roughly $15bn to $16bn in revenue last year, with biggest contributions from Starlink and US government defence and space travel contracts.
  • In February it merged with xAI, moving valuation from $1.25tn to $1.75tn over the past month and now $2tn according to Bloomberg, with forecast revenues of $20bn this year and $1bn from AI division.
Gain

SpaceX is opening its planned $75bn public offering to non-professional investors, earmarking up to 30% of shares for retail buyers in the UK, EU, Australia, Canada, Japan and Korea.

The rundown

According to Reuters reporting cited in the article, SpaceX briefed bankers on Monday night on a summer roadshow beginning 7 June for analysts, then 11 June for retail investors, with venue undisclosed. The company plans to offer shares to investors from the UK, EU, Australia, Canada, Japan and Korea.

Financial context provided is that SpaceX generated roughly $15bn to $16bn last year from Starlink and US government contracts, with a forecast of $20bn this year including $1bn from the AI division. Bloomberg Intelligence analyst George Ferguson noted valuation difficulty due to limited public profit data.

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