SpaceX IPO Fails to Deliver Tokenized Ownership for Crypto Traders

Crypto traders were eager to participate in the public debut of Elon Musk's rocket and satellite business, SpaceX (NASDAQ: SPCX), but they didn't quite get what they wanted. While traditional investors received actual shares, crypto users were left with perpetual futures that tracked the listing closely.

At the time of its launch, SpaceX had a value of about $2 trillion, closing higher than $2.1 trillion after its initial trading period. Close to 500 million shares were traded, with SpaceX listed at $150 and going up to as high as $176.52 before ending at $160.95.

Traders on the Hyperliquid exchange were buying and selling SpaceX futures worth close to $180 during opening bell, but these declined to about $153 right before the stock began trading at $150. This small difference in price was enough for crypto traders to define a relevant price range.

The IPO itself went off quite smoothly compared to the usual Wall Street procedure, considering its size. However, the crypto market still offered some trading instruments even amid tough times for the industry. Bitcoin has been underperforming equities for over 18 months, and the treasury company Strategy (MSTR) is down significantly.

Ron Baron, an early investor in SpaceX, did not sell into the debut. He said he wanted to protect his firm's percentage by buying $1 billion worth of shares, keeping their position at about 25% of the total.