Elon Musk directly denies rumors of internal SpaceX stock sales... IPO remains "silent"

In response to foreign media reports that US space exploration company SpaceX plans to sell internal shares at a valuation of approximately $800 billion, CEO Elon Musk personally stepped forward to deny the news. Recently, Musk has repeatedly issued inaccurate clarifications regarding external financing rumors about his companies.

On the 6th local time, Musk posted on social platform X to refute rumors of an internal SpaceX stock sale as “inaccurate,” and explained that the company regularly conducts two internal stock buybacks each year to provide liquidity for employees and early investors. He emphasized that this move does not involve transferring insider holdings to external investors, but rather the company directly buying back shares. This is a common practice used by growth-stage private companies to manage share prices to reasonable levels and protect existing investors.

The controversy stemmed from reports by The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg that SpaceX had initiated internal asset transactions and speculated that it might push for an initial public offering next year. However, Musk avoided any mention of an IPO and instead emphasized the company’s current solid financial position. He stated that SpaceX has maintained a strong cash flow for a long time, and these internal stock transactions are unrelated to a new round of financing.

Musk listed several factors behind the significant increase in SpaceX’s corporate value: progress with the next-generation Starship launch vehicle, growth in Starlink satellite communication services, and securing spectrum resources for satellite-to-phone connectivity technology. He specifically pointed out that commercial Starlink revenue now constitutes the largest portion of the company’s earnings, with revenue from NASA accounting for less than 5%, and strongly refuted the claim that “Starlink receives NASA subsidies.”

These remarks are also seen as a response to recent controversy over potential conflicts of interest involving NASA administrator nominee—and Musk ally—Jared Isaacman. Musk emphasized that the core reason SpaceX wins NASA contracts is “providing the best product at the lowest price,” attempting to directly address the doubts.

The market continues to closely watch the possibility and timeline of a SpaceX IPO. If the current $800 billion valuation is confirmed, SpaceX would surpass OpenAI to become the world’s highest-valued private company. In light of this, any future official announcement of an IPO timeline or new financing is expected to have a profound impact on the global startup and aerospace industries.