Wealthsimple, Kraken open retail access to SpaceX IPO

Wealthsimple and Kraken Launch Platforms for SpaceX IPO Access

As SpaceX’s roadshow kicks off Thursday ahead of its June 12 listing on the Nasdaq, two platforms are opening new doors for retail investors outside the United States to participate in what is expected to be the largest initial public offering in history.

Wealthsimple Opens IPO Access for Canadians

Toronto-based Wealthsimple activated its IPO Access feature last week, allowing Canadian retail investors to place conditional offers for shares in upcoming US and Canadian IPOs at the offering price. The feature, which gives everyday investors a privilege historically reserved for institutions and high-net-worth individuals, is positioned to serve demand around the SpaceX listing.betakit

“Big institutions get to buy in at the offering price, while everyday investors are excluded,” Swapnil Parikh, Wealthsimple’s vice-president of product, said in a statement announcing the feature. Wealthsimple described itself as an “invitee of investment banks,” receiving share allocations to distribute to users.betakit

Under the platform’s model, investors submit a conditional offer specifying how many shares they want, with settled cash reserved in their accounts. If demand exceeds supply, allocations are determined through a process disclosed in advance of each IPO. Users who sell their allocated shares within 90 days lose access to future IPO offerings.wealthsimple

Kraken’s xStocks Brings Tokenized IPO Shares to Global Investors

Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, announced on June 3 that its xStocks tokenized equities framework will soon let retail investors across more than 100 countries participate in US-listed IPOs at the offering price. Under the model, customers submit non-binding indications of interest before a company lists. Payward then aggregates demand and works directly with the underwriting syndicate.businesswire

On listing day, shares are tokenized at a 1:1 ratio, backed by the underlying equity held in custody by a regulated entity, and distributed to eligible customers at the IPO price. The xStocks platform has processed over $30 billion in volume and serves more than 125,000 holders globally.bitcoin

The first tokenized IPOs through xStocks are expected within weeks.businesswire

The SpaceX Backdrop

SpaceX announced a share price of $135 on Wednesday, seeking to raise $75 billion by selling approximately 556 million shares at a valuation of $1.75 trillion, according to Reuters. The company is set to begin trading June 12 after pricing on June 11, with up to 30 percent of the offering potentially earmarked for individual investors — a notably large retail allocation designed to engage Elon Musk’s fanbase and broaden the company’s ownership base.reuters