Elon Musk loses $601 billion as SpaceX shares crash 50 percent from post-IPO peak

Following a post-IPO rally that pushed SpaceX shares above $225 and briefly lifted the company’s market value to almost $3 trillion, the tide has turned sharply. Elon Musk, the world’s richest person and the first individual to surpass a $1 trillion personal fortune in June, has now lost more than $600 billion in paper wealth over the past five weeks as SpaceX shares tumbled nearly 50 percent from their post-listing peak. The decline has been compounded by a steep sell-off in Tesla, adding to the pressure on Musk’s fortune.

According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Musk’s net worth has fallen by about $601 billion since reaching a record $1.32 trillion on June 16. At the time of writing, his fortune stood at roughly $719 billion. The reversal has largely tracked the sharp decline in SpaceX, whose shares have dropped from more than $225 to $115.07. At the same time, Tesla suffered its worst weekly decline since 2022, falling 18 percent after reporting weaker-than-expected second-quarter earnings and negative free cash flow.

Short sellers amass $15.5 billion gain

The selling has also attracted a growing number of investors betting that the stock has further to fall. SpaceX now trades about 16 percent below its $135 initial public offering price, making it one of the weakest-performing large U.S. IPOs since 2009. Short sellers have amassed an estimated $15.5 billion in unrealized gains, while short interest has climbed to about 56 percent of the public float, or roughly 360 million shares. Musk, who spent years sparring with short sellers during Tesla’s early years, responded on social media by warning that firms maintaining large short positions in SpaceX for extended periods face slim chances of lasting.

The slide has taken a heavy toll on the company’s valuation. Musk owns 42 percent of SpaceX and controls roughly 82 percent of its voting power through Class B shares, leaving much of his wealth tied directly to the stock. Since peaking above $225 shortly after its mid-June Nasdaq debut, SpaceX has shed nearly half its value, erasing hundreds of billions of dollars in market capitalization. Investor sentiment weakened further after the company called off a Falcon 9 mission that was due to launch 24 satellites from California’s Vandenberg Space Force Base.

Starship delays test investor long-term confidence.

Attention is also turning to the company’s upcoming insider lockup expiration, an event that could increase the supply of shares available for trading. Beginning in August, shares held by early investors and employees will gradually become eligible for sale. Although Musk’s own stake remains locked until June 2027, as many as 911.5 million shares could enter the market as early as Aug. 6, shortly after SpaceX reports its first quarterly earnings as a public company on Aug. 4. Goldman Sachs, the lead underwriter for the IPO, also has the authority to release certain shares before the scheduled expiration of the lockup period.

Investors are also watching Starship, SpaceX’s next-generation launch system, which remains central to the company’s long-term plans. The 13th test flight, originally scheduled for July 23, was delayed twice, first by a booster abort trigger and then by poor weather at the Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas. The mission is expected to make the first attempt to deploy 20 Starlink V3 satellites from Starship on a suborbital flight before atmospheric re-entry. For shareholders, another delay or failure could raise concerns about SpaceX’s near-term prospects and weigh further on the stock.