SpaceX’s $20B Bond Debut Ignites Market Shockwave, Stock Plummets 23% in Three Days
Just a fortnight after its record-shattering $75 billion IPO on June 12, 2026, Elon Musk’s Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (NASDAQ: SPCX) sent shockwaves through the financial markets. The company announced its first-ever investment-grade senior unsecured bond offering of at least $20 billion, triggering a dramatic three-day stock selloff that exceeded 23% and erased over $600 billion in market value.
SpaceX shares, which had skyrocketed to an all-time high of $225.64 on June 16 — nearly 67% above their IPO price of $135 — plummeted to as low as $154.60 on June 23, marking their lowest point since going public. The funds raised from the bond issuance are earmarked to refinance a $20 billion bridge loan secured in March as the company geared up for its IPO. The funds will also support its grand AI infrastructure ambitions, including the $60 billion all-stock acquisition of AI coding tool creator, Anysphere (Cursor).
Despite the selloff, SpaceX revealed it holds a staggering $100.8 billion in cash and cash equivalents as of June 19 — surpassing even Microsoft. However, analysts at Goldman Sachs and Evercore ISI forecast that SpaceX’s capital expenditures could surpass $1 trillion by 2031, primarily funneled into its AI and space data center ventures. KeyBanc Capital Markets predicts SpaceX could generate negative free cash flow of $28 billion in 2026 alone. The investor community remains split: while some see long-term potential in Starlink’s 12 million subscribers and AI deals like a $6.3 billion computing contract with startup Reflection AI, others are unnerved by the rapid pace of expenditure.
📌 Source: Axios – After $86 Billion IPO, SpaceX to Borrow $20 Billion | GuruFocus – SpaceX Shares Drop 16.4%