16 hours ago
857
Alphabet is staring at a big payday from SpaceX as the rocket company lines up what could become the biggest IPO ever.
A new filing in Alaska shows Google LLC owned 6.11% of SpaceX at the end of 2025. Alaska requires companies to disclose holders with stakes of 5% or more. At a $2 trillion valuation, that stake would be worth about $122 billion.
That holding may already be smaller after the February merger between SpaceX and xAI, Elon Musk’s AI and social media company. At a $2 trillion valuation, that would still be worth about $100 billion. Google had disclosed its SpaceX investment before, but not the exact size.
SpaceX takes major investors across the U.S. while banks finish the offering
Meanwhile, SpaceX is currently preparing to show key sites across the United States to possible anchor investors as it tries to secure backing for the deal.
People briefed on the plans allegedly said the company wants to take investors who could buy large stakes, including sovereign wealth funds, to facilities in California and Texas.
SpaceX also plans to charter a plane from New York in the coming weeks for visits that could include Mississippi, where xAI is building a large data center campus.
The company has filed confidentially to go public and wants to raise as much as $75 billion at a valuation above $2 trillion, a level previously reported by Cryptopolitan.
If it gets there, the deal would be the largest IPO on record. Advisers working on the listing are said to be working nonstop. Chief Financial Officer Bret Johnsen has told bankers he is unhappy about details of the IPO leaking out. He has also reminded the banks involved that the process is supposed to stay private.
After the listing, Elon would be on track to become the world’s first trillionaire. Longtime executives, including President Gwynne Shotwell, would also see their wealth rise. Early investors are set for large gains, but even those who bought in about five years ago are still likely to do very well.
SpaceX leans on Starlink, launches, Starship, and cell service to defend its price
PitchBook senior research analyst Franco Granda, who covers SpaceX, said, “Benchmarked against high-growth large-cap peers, SpaceX’s profile warrants a premium multiple, with around 50% EBITDA margins and around a 50% three-year revenue CAGR in addition to multiple compounding growth vectors.
The valuation becomes progressively easier to justify over a 5-7 year horizon as Starship commercializes and the direct-to-cell business scales, with returns driven by milestone execution rather than near-term earnings growth.”
Starlink generated an estimated $10.6 billion in revenue and $5.8 billion in EBITDA in 2025, with a 54% margin. It made up more than two-thirds of total SpaceX revenue.
The subscriber base doubled for a second straight year to 9.2 million users across more than 150 countries. By 2040, forecasts see Starlink revenue reaching $120 billion with a 70% EBITDA margin.
SpaceX flew 165 Falcon 9 missions in 2025, about 52% of all global orbital launches. Its booster reuse rate reached 84%, cutting launch costs by as much as 65%.
The launch unit is estimated to have produced $5.2 billion in revenue and $1.7 billion in EBITDA in 2025, with a 33% margin. Franco’s forecast puts that business at $30 billion in revenue by 2040 as Starship takes over the full manifest. The first commercial payload delivery is expected in 2026.
On mobile, Starlink’s direct-to-cell service reached 6 million subscribers through 27 carrier partnerships in about 18 months.
If you're reading this, you’re already ahead. Stay there with our newsletter.
English (US)