SpaceX Initial Public Offering Makes Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk First Trillionaire
- tech360.tv
- Jun 12
- 2 min read
SpaceX raised a record USD 75 billion in its initial public offering, making Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk the first trillionaire in the world.
The net worth of Musk will exceed USD 1.1 trillion when the stock begins trading, according to calculations by Forbes and Reuters.
Prior to the share sale, Forbes pegged his net worth at roughly USD 780 billion.
Most of the wealth of Musk rests with SpaceX, where he holds a stake worth roughly USD 866 billion.
Alphabet co-founder Larry Page is next in line behind Musk.
Deputy editor at Forbes Wealth Matt Durot said the second richest person has been hovering around USD 300 billion, and only Oracle founder Larry Ellison has ever been worth USD 400 billion.
The sprawling rocket, satellite, and AI company SpaceX forms the center of the empire of Musk alongside electric-car maker Tesla.
Musk expanded his influence with the USD 44 billion acquisition of social media platform Twitter in 2022.
The deal gave him a direct channel to hundreds of millions of users and made him a prominent voice on politics, immigration, government spending, and free speech.
His move into politics included a role in U.S. President Donald Trump's Department of Government Efficiency.
The political fallout coincided with weakening Tesla sales in several international markets as protests and consumer boycotts targeted the electric vehicle maker.
The alliance of Musk with Trump fractured amid disagreements over policy and spending, spilling into a public feud before the two struck a more conciliatory tone.
Musk, 54, was born in Pretoria, South Africa, to a Canadian mother and South African father.
He attended the University of Pennsylvania, graduating in 1997.
He took over as Tesla's CEO in 2008 with the conviction that electric vehicles could combine high performance with software-driven features.
Tesla has faced legal challenges and shareholder concerns tied to its chief executive officer, particularly his 2018 pay package that was once worth USD 56 billion.
Beyond Tesla and SpaceX, Musk has co-founded five other companies, including tunneling startup The Boring Company and brain implant maker Neuralink.
Market observers have dubbed the network of businesses around him the Muskonomy.
Some investors call the valuation boost driven by faith in his vision the Elon premium.
Senior strategist at Renaissance Capital Matt Kennedy said SpaceX is a bet on Elon Musk, and a market cap of USD 1.5 trillion to USD 2 trillion is best characterized as the Elon Musk premium.
Former General Motors vice chairman Bob Lutz credited Musk with renewing the world's respect for American ingenuity in automotive engineering.
JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon called Musk the Edison of our time and our Einstein.
SpaceX raised USD 75 billion in an initial public offering, elevating Elon Musk to the first trillionaire in the world.
The net worth of Musk will surpass USD 1.1 trillion, driven by an USD 866 billion stake in SpaceX along with his holdings in Tesla.
Musk has expanded his business footprint through the acquisition of Twitter and co-founded firms like Neuralink and The Boring Company.
Source: Reuters
