
Written by: Wall Street News
BlackRock intends to participate in SpaceX's initial public offering, a move that could make the world's largest asset management company a core anchor investor in what is set to be the largest IPO in history.
According to reports citing informed sources, BlackRock is considering participating in this issuance with a scale of $5 billion to $10 billion. The final investment amount will depend on SpaceX's IPO pricing and other related factors. SpaceX is expected to start its formal roadshow as early as early June, with the fundraising scale for this IPO potentially reaching $75 billion.
If the deal is completed, it would be a rare large single subscription for an IPO in nearly 25 years. Reports show that investment bankers' statistics indicate there have been fewer than 12 IPO cases in the past twenty-five years where a single subscription reached or exceeded $1 billion. For SpaceX, which is actively seeking anchor investors, substantial financial support from BlackRock is expected to attract more large institutional investors to follow suit.
Lagging behind peers, BlackRock plans to double down on SpaceX via IPO
BlackRock has previously held shares in SpaceX through private placement channels. According to public mutual fund filing documents, its existing holdings are valued at least at $300 million. However, compared to peers like Fidelity, Baillie Gifford, and Franklin Templeton, which have established large positions, the size of BlackRock's holdings is noticeably smaller.
This potential IPO investment will utilize BlackRock's actively managed funds with a scale of $536 billion. Reports, citing those close to the deal, indicate that given the unprecedented scale of this IPO, SpaceX will need several institutions to individually contribute billions of dollars in funding.
On the eve of SpaceX's IPO, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink has become increasingly positive in his public statements about Musk. Earlier this year, Fink personally interviewed Musk at the Davos Forum, praising the investment returns of Tesla. "Just imagine, if a large number of pension funds had followed Musk at the time of Tesla's IPO, the returns would have been remarkable," Fink stated on stage. At the end of the interview, he said: "There are too many misunderstandings about Musk. I can tell you, he is a true friend of mine. I continue to learn from him, and his vision for the future inspires me greatly."
Enthusiasm despite risks, institutional investors remain optimistic
In anticipation of the IPO, SpaceX organized a special two-day tour for large investors last month, including visits to the Starbase launch site located in southern Texas and the xAI data center in Memphis. Participants included large delegations from institutions such as BlackRock, T. Rowe Price, Capital Group, and Fidelity Investments.
According to reports, an investor from an asset management company participating in the tour stated, "The logic of the bulls is simple: bet alongside Musk, you have never lost money." This statement reflects Wall Street's overall attitude towards SpaceX—despite clear risks, institutional investors generally prefer to participate in this historic deal.
High valuations coexist with governance risks
Despite the optimistic market sentiment, SpaceX's IPO is not without controversy. The company plans to go public at an extremely high price-to-sales ratio, its core AI strategy is still in the adjustment phase, several key AI researchers have successively left, and the important pillar for the growth of its space business—a fully reusable large rocket—is still in the testing phase.
In terms of corporate governance, investors' rights will be strictly limited. According to excerpts from SpaceX's confidential prospectus obtained by The Information, the company plans to clearly warn investors in the document: "Mandatory arbitration" clauses will limit shareholders' legal recourse. In addition, Musk will hold special voting rights shares, with each share having 10 votes, significantly concentrating control of the company in his hands.
Even so, investor interest primarily stems from SpaceX's overwhelming competitive advantage in the rocket launch sector, as well as the commercial imagination brought by this advantage in delivering high-value payloads to space—such as advanced chips that support the operation of AI models. However, how to seek a balance between unprecedented high valuations and significant concessions in governance will be the core proposition that tests investors' faith in this IPO.
免责声明:本文章仅代表作者个人观点,不代表本平台的立场和观点。本文章仅供信息分享,不构成对任何人的任何投资建议。用户与作者之间的任何争议,与本平台无关。如网页中刊载的文章或图片涉及侵权,请提供相关的权利证明和身份证明发送邮件到support@aicoin.com,本平台相关工作人员将会进行核查。
