To the moon: How to invest in the space economy (beyond SpaceX)
With Elon Musk’s SpaceX about to go public, here’s how savvy investors can get in on the 21st-century space race
Elon Musk’s rocket company, SpaceX, is about to start trading on the Nasdaq stock exchange, under the ticker SPCX, in what is set to be the biggest-ever initial public offering (IPO). SpaceX’s IPO prospectus, filed in late May, gives investors an insight into the company’s finances and the risks behind its grand vision: make life multi-planetary and establish a colony on Mars. The red planet is mentioned 64 times, while there are 74 references to the moon, and even 10 inclusions of the phrase ‘asteroid mining’.
Right now, SpaceX is focused on its launch vehicles, Falcon 9 and Starship, with a view to landing on the moon, potentially as early as 2028. Musk also wants to put data centres in low-Earth orbit – at altitudes ranging between 160 and 2,000 kilometres – to power artificial intelligence (AI).
The exact data for the IPO hasn’t been confirmed at the time of writing, but it’s expected to take place at the end of next week, with 12 June an oft-quoted possibility. SpaceX is hoping to raise $75 billion at a valuation of $1.8 trillion, reduced from an earlier valuation of $2 trillion. This would surpass the $25.6 billion raised by oil giant Saudi Aramco in 2019 and the $21.7 billion by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba in 2014, both of which broke records at the time.
SpaceX leads the space race, but questions remain
The majority of people won’t be able to take part in the SpaceX IPO and get hold of shares at the offering price; the only option will be to buy shares once the stock starts trading publicly. The problem with this is that retail investors will likely pay a premium for the stock as demand sends the share price skyrocketing. Last month, AI chipmaker Cerebras Systems went public and opened 89 per cent above its IPO price. Given the fervour around SpaceX, it’s entirely possible that SPCX could open more than 100 per cent higher.
The general advice is to avoid buying shares on IPO day. More often than not, stocks eventually come back down to earth a few months after going public. However, SpaceX is widely regarded as a potential once-in-a-lifetime growth opportunity. Investors will need to weigh up the pros and cons of the company’s business and whether buying shares on IPO day would represent a worthwhile long-term investment.
As George Ferguson, senior aerospace and defence analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence explains, “SpaceX dominates spaceflights, but most missions support its own satellite-internet business rather than external customers, slowing launch-revenue growth in 2026.” Its spaceflight and rocket launch segment brought in roughly $4.1 billion in 2025.
“With 74 per cent of launches tied to internal demand and heavy research and development spending keeping the business unprofitable, improved economics from rockets such as Starship are critical,” Ferguson adds.
SpaceX carried out 165 Falcon 9 flights last year, more than the rest of the world’s launches combined, excluding the five Starship test flights. Rival launch operators are set to increase flight rates in 2026 and, according to Ferguson, are likely to face fewer high barriers to entry. Competitors include Firefly, RocketLab, and United Launch Alliance, a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin.
Beyond spaceflights and rocket launches, SpaceX represents less than 20 per cent of the global commercial space market, points out Mark Boggett, CEO of Seraphim Space and investment manager of the London-listed Seraphim Space Investment Trust, the only publicly traded fund focused exclusively on private, growth-stage space technology companies. “The real opportunity lies in the remaining 80 per cent, spanning satellites, data, communications, security and in-orbit operations,” he argues.
Looking for opportunities beyond SpaceX
For investors who want exposure to the space economy beyond SpaceX, there are a variety of different ways to get on board. From satellite broadband communication companies (e.g. AST SpaceMobile) and satellite imagery providers (such as Planet Labs) to space infrastructure companies (e.g. Redwire).
Like SpaceX, many pure-play space companies which have already gone public are still unprofitable and rely on government contracts for the bulk of their revenue. “Investing in the final frontier carries considerable risks, but also the potential for substantial rewards. For most investors, a diversified approach to the space theme is likely to be the most prudent strategy,” argues Dan Boardman-Weston, CEO of BRI Wealth Management.
The hype around the SpaceX IPO has seen retail investors pour money into space-themed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in recent weeks. The Tema Space Innovators ETF, trading under the ticker NASA, rose a little over 37 per cent in May – perhaps thanks to the fact that its holdings include SpaceX pre-IPO private shares. The VanEck Space ETF, meanwhile, which launched under the ticker WARP on 7 May 2026, rose nearly 39 per cent through to the end of the month. Both ETFs offer investors diversified exposure to companies along the space supply chain.
Money will continue to flow into space ETFs and stocks in the coming months and years. The space economy was worth $626.4 billion in 2025 and is on course to hit the $1 trillion mark by 2034, according to industry consulting firm Novaspace. Investor sentiment has also recently been boosted by the Artemis II mission to the moon, says Boardman-Weston. Now, SpaceX will help propel the space economy to greater heights.
Boggett sums it up best: “The SpaceX IPO [will] recycle significant capital back into the market, much of which is likely to be redeployed into the next generation of space companies, fuelling innovation, and broadening the investment opportunity set.”
