Traders Push $1B Into SpaceX Perpetual Futures

Crypto traders funneled over $1 billion into a SpaceX-linked perpetual futures contract in the past three days as some investors sought exposure before the company’s expected Nasdaq listing. Cumulative trading in the SPCX contract has exceeded $2.6 billion since May 30, with open interest near $363 million.

The SPCX product is a perpetual futures contract tied to SpaceX’s reported pre-IPO valuation. The contract has no expiration date, requires periodic funding payments between long and short holders, and can be liquidated if leveraged positions move sharply against traders. Market participants use the contract for continuous price discovery prior to any public trading of SpaceX shares.

Hyperliquid helped create the SPCX contract and activity moved to larger venues, with Binance taking a substantial share of volume. The product attracts traders who use leverage and round-the-clock markets. Some retail demand appears to come from investors who expect limited allocations in the official IPO bookbuild and are seeking alternative exposure.

SpaceX’s offering has been priced at $135 a share, implying an expected valuation of roughly $1.75 trillion to $1.8 trillion. At one point the SPCX contract traded around $162, implying about a 17% premium to the listing price. Early speculative activity pushed SPCX above $220 and near $230 before the premium narrowed.

Underwriters have received hundreds of billions of dollars of investor interest for a planned $75 billion raise, making the offering multiple times oversubscribed. SpaceX reserved a larger portion of the deal for individual investors, but peak demand means many retail buyers are likely to receive partial allocations.

Trading includes both bullish and bearish positions. Analysis of on-chain activity identified a trader using the handle wenyu8888888 who placed a $5.7 million, 2x short position on SPCX. Such positions indicate active use of the synthetic market for bets on both a first-day pop and a decline in any IPO premium.

Perpetual futures do not grant ownership of SpaceX stock, voting rights, or claims on shares. Prices reflect traders’ expectations and the leverage they accept, which makes SPCX a measure of speculative interest but not a substitute for holding equity.

Historical IPO performance has shown wide early volatility. One analysis found the median major IPO fell 31% in its first year and suffered a peak-to-trough decline of about 53% during that period. Examples of large first-year drawdowns include Facebook and other major technology listings that experienced steep interim declines before any longer-term recoveries.

Regulatory attention has followed the proposed listing. In a letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission, Senator Elizabeth Warren asked the agency to consider delaying the IPO and raised concerns about retail investor protection, concentrated control through supervoting shares, mandatory arbitration clauses, and the effects of state corporate law. Registration materials remain active and a delay has not been announced.

Perpetual futures will continue to trade ahead of any listing and provide a continuous market where traders can express views on SpaceX’s debut until Nasdaq trading begins.