SpaceX conducted the largest initial public offering in history on Friday, raising about 75 billion dollars through the sale of 555 million shares.
The company sold shares at 135 dollars each, with the stock opening at 150 dollars and rising more than 10 percent in early trading. This surpassed the previous record set by Saudi Aramco in 2019.
Elon Musk, who owns roughly 42 percent of the shares and must hold them for one year, saw his net worth exceed 1.2 trillion dollars. He spoke from SpaceX headquarters in Starbase, Texas, noting the company's start in a warehouse in El Segundo.
More than 4,000 employees became millionaires from stock holdings. One longtime worker, Trevor Hise, accumulated shares now valued above 15 million dollars. Musk and President Gwynne Shotwell marked the debut by ringing the Nasdaq opening bell.
Musk said the proceeds will support growth including more than 1 million satellites in orbit and space-based artificial intelligence data centers. Shotwell noted potential synergies with Tesla.
