[Sportschosun Jang Jong-ho] As Elon Musk's aerospace company SpaceX successfully completed its historic listing, stories of employees and investors whose lives were transformed overnight are drawing attention.
SpaceX debuted on the New York Stock Exchange on the 12th local time at $150 per share. It is regarded as one of the largest IPOs in history. On its first day of trading, the stock price briefly surged to $176.52, pushing the company's valuation above $2 trillion. Musk's personal wealth also soared, setting a record as the world's first $1 trillion asset holder.
Against this backdrop, more and more ordinary frontline workers are joining the ranks of millionaires almost overnight.
According to U.S. media outlets including The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) and New York Post, one of the most dramatic rags-to-riches stories is that of Juan Hernandez, a former welder from Mexico, 42. He joined SpaceX in 2015 as a welder earning $28 an hour, or about 40,000 won. He learned about the company through a friend's recommendation, but later recalled, "I didn't even know what SpaceX was back then."
However, stock options granted by the company and shares purchased through payroll deductions produced unexpected results. Based on the IPO price, the value of his holdings reached about $880,000, and his assets reportedly exceeded $1 million, or about 1.5 billion won, as the stock rose on listing day. He is said to have sold part of his stake to buy real estate in Texas and start a small business with his wife.
He left SpaceX last year and is now working for rival Blue Origin.
Trevor Heiss, a former launch systems engineer, chose a SpaceX internship in 2011 despite his parents' opposition. At the time, his parents urged him to take a stable job at General Electric (GE), but he bet on the startup instead.
Over 12 years at the company, Heiss accumulated more than 100,000 shares. He sold some stock to pay for his wedding and a home down payment, but even his remaining stake was reportedly worth at least $13.5 million, based on the IPO price.
After leaving the company in 2023, he now works as a real estate investor and says he is effectively living a "semi-retired life."
Another former engineer, J. Andre Lavoie, 63, holds a stake worth about $28 million. He plans to use it to complete the renovation of a hotel he operates in northern Italy.
Musk's longtime allies and early investors reaped even larger gains.
Antonio Gracias, known as an early Tesla, Inc. investor, reportedly realized about $68 billion in valuation gains through the investment firm he leads, Valor Equity Partners. The firm is SpaceX's second-largest shareholder.
The returns for early venture investors were also enormous. Founders Fund invested $600 million in SpaceX in 2008, and the value of its stake has now swelled to about $50 billion.
Industry analysts estimate that this listing will make more than 4,400 current and former SpaceX employees millionaires. Of them, about 400 are expected to hold assets of more than $100 million, or about 150 billion won.
However, employees and investors who held shares before the listing cannot sell their stock for several months under lock-up rules designed to prevent mass selling. Some employees are expected to be able to sell part of their holdings as early as July.
Jang Jong-ho bellho@sportschosun.com
