The Two Government-Backed Funds That Bought Into SpaceX After Its Record IPO

NBIM's SpaceX investment is modest in relative terms—it holds far larger stakes in companies like Nvidia (1.3%, worth $61.8 billion) and Apple (1.2%, worth $52.7 billion) as of June 30 . But the addition places the Norwegian fund as a significant investor in both of Elon Musk's publicly traded companies: it also owns roughly 1% of Tesla, valued at about $15.7 billion .

Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF): Anchor Order in the Billions

Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF), estimated at roughly $925 billion in assets under management in 2025–2026, placed an anchor order in the SpaceX IPO reported to be in the range of $1–5 billion . Earlier reports indicated PIF was in talks for a ~$5 billion anchor investment, partly to protect its existing pre-IPO stake of nearly 1% from dilution .

PIF already held significant exposure to SpaceX before the IPO through earlier funding rounds and indirect holdings. Related Saudi entities, including Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, who held a 0.63% stake that could be worth around $10.6 billion at the expected $1.77 trillion valuation, were also beneficiaries .

It should be noted that while PIF placed its order into the IPO alongside other Gulf sovereign funds, it has not formally confirmed a post-IPO holding in the same manner as Norway. The ultimate allocated amount may differ from the order size .

The Broader IPO Context

SpaceX's dual-class share structure gives Musk 84.3% of voting rights as of the IPO prospectus date .

Broader Institutional Appetite: Gulf Funds, U.S. Mutual Funds, and Retail Access

Demand from major institutions has been exceptionally strong and wide-ranging:

• Gulf sovereign wealth funds: Beyond PIF, the Kuwait Investment Authority placed an order of a similar size ($1–5 billion), and the Qatar Investment Authority also participated, underscoring heavy Middle Eastern demand .
• Marquee U.S. mutual funds: Pre-IPO holders including Baron Partners Fund (33% of assets in SpaceX as of March 2026), Baron Asset Fund (25.5%), and ARK Venture Fund (11–16%) were among the largest institutional owners . Fidelity Contrafund held a roughly 2% position .
• Cathie Wood's ARK Invest: Made SpaceX one of its largest holdings across multiple funds post-IPO and defended the bull case, citing a $28.5 trillion total addressable market for SpaceX's technologies .
• Retail and 401(k) access: Funds like Destiny Tech100 and ARK Venture offered retail investors indirect exposure even before the IPO .

In total, SpaceX's public debut drew unprecedented demand from sovereign wealth funds (Norway, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar), marquee U.S. growth funds, and large asset managers, making it the largest technology IPO in history.