The strong retail participation reflects the company’s efforts to broaden ownership beyond institutional investors. According to reports, roughly one-fifth of the shares offered in the IPO were earmarked for retail investors worldwide.
The offering attracted overwhelming demand, with subscription requests reportedly exceeding $100 billion. As a result, many investors received fewer shares than they had sought despite being allotted stock.
Shares of SpaceX have delivered a strong debut on the public markets. By the end of their second trading session, the stock had climbed 43% above its IPO price of $135, valuing the company at approximately $2.5 trillion.
ALSO READ | SpaceX IPO haul rises to $85.7 bn after underwriters exercise greenshoe
Among retail brokerages, Robinhood Markets said 855,424 customers used its IPO Access platform to request shares at the offering price. All of those requests received allocations, although the company did not disclose the extent to which allocations matched requested quantities.
A Robinhood spokesperson confirmed that every customer who applied for SpaceX shares through the platform received at least one share. The brokerage had 27.7 million funded accounts at the end of May.
Other major platforms, including Charles Schwab, Fidelity Investments and SoFi Technologies, also allocated shares to all eligible customers who participated in the IPO, according to company representatives.
Retail demand varied significantly across regions. In Japan, investors collectively purchased 16.3 million shares worth about $2.2 billion. In the UK, retail investors placed orders approaching $1 billion but ultimately received around $364 million worth of stock. Elsewhere in Europe, demand of nearly $2.5 billion translated into allocations of roughly $600 million.
Not all markets saw the same outcome. In South Korea, clients of Mirae Asset Securities did not receive any IPO allocation despite the firm serving as one of the offering’s underwriters.
The IPO prospectus had identified Robinhood, Schwab, Fidelity, SoFi and E*TRADE as potential channels through which retail investors could access the offering.
With Bloomberg inputs
