History is being written on the Nasdaq this morning, and its author is a boy from Pretoria. Elon Musk, the South African-born entrepreneur behind SpaceX, Tesla, and xAI, stands on the verge of becoming the world’s first trillionaire following SpaceX’s record-shattering initial public offering (IPO), which began trading on Friday under the ticker SPCX.
The numbers, by any measure, are staggering. SpaceX priced its shares at 135,raisingapproximately75 billion in what is already being hailed as the largest IPO in global history. The listing values the rocket and satellite company at an eye-watering 1.75to1.8 trillion—a valuation that would have seemed like science fiction just a decade ago, when SpaceX was still struggling to land its first rocket booster.
For Musk personally, the financial implications are transformative. As of pre-trading today, major wealth trackers estimated his net worth at approximately 970to982 billion. The SpaceX debut is projected to push his combined holdings in the rocket company and Tesla well past the 1trillionmark,withsomemodelssuggestinghecouldreach1.1 trillion or higher depending on opening performance. The ticker opened strongly, with shares indicating an immediate upward pop.
The IPO marks a pivotal transition for SpaceX, which has spent two decades as a private powerhouse known for reusable rockets, the Starlink satellite internet constellation, and historic crewed missions to the International Space Station. Going public unlocks massive capital for Musk’s even more ambitious goals: the Starship lunar lander, a permanent Mars base, and a global satellite internet network that is already reshaping telecommunications.
Yet the milestone has also reignited fierce debates about wealth concentration. Even as Musk’s fortune balloons, critics point to inflation, housing crises, and stagnant wages for ordinary workers. “One man having a trillion dollars is not a sign of a healthy economy,” one economist tweeted shortly after trading began.
Musk, characteristically, has not yet commented publicly on the development. He is likely busy—perhaps watching screens at SpaceX headquarters, perhaps designing a new engine, perhaps simply smiling at a number that once belonged only to fiction. Trading is underway. The trillion-dollar line is moments away.
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