It has been reported that Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) and Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA) have each submitted orders to subscribe to SpaceX's IPO worth between $1 billion and $5 billion, and Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) may also make a significant commitment. Middle Eastern entities are already major shareholders in SpaceX, with PIF, QIA, and Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund holding early-stage stakes in the company.
Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds are making substantial bets on SpaceX's initial public offering, further solidifying their pivotal role as key financiers in the global artificial intelligence infrastructure build-out.
According to Bloomberg, citing informed sources, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) and Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA) have each submitted subscription orders ranging from USD 1 billion to USD 5 billion, while Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) is also expected to make a significant commitment.
This surge in subscription interest reflects broader enthusiasm among global institutional investors rushing into the deal—reports indicate that some investors have placed single orders exceeding USD 10 billion, although final allocations may fall short of requested amounts.
SpaceX plans to offer 555.6 million shares at a fixed price of USD 135 per share, aiming to raise approximately USD 75 billion, with trading expected to commence on June 12. If successfully executed, this IPO would surpass Saudi Aramco’s 2019 record of USD 29.4 billion to become the largest IPO in history.
Middle Eastern capital has already deeply embedded itself across Musk’s ecosystem
Entities from the Middle East are already significant shareholders in SpaceX. According to informed sources, based on Musk’s targeted valuation of USD 1.8 trillion, these holdings have already generated substantial unrealized gains.
PIF’s AI investment platform, Humain, invested USD 3 billion in xAI this year, with those equity stakes set to convert into SpaceX shares; PIF also holds indirect exposure to SpaceX through Kingdom Holding. Abu Dhabi’s sovereign fund MGX simultaneously holds stakes in Anthropic, OpenAI, and xAI, achieving full coverage across the three most prominent AI companies. QIA has adopted a similar strategy, having already invested in both Anthropic and xAI.
Elon Musk himself has also forged close ties with the Middle East. During his visit to the UAE last December, he was photographed alongside members of Abu Dhabi’s royal family and Dubai’s Crown Prince.
Several of his companies have also significantly expanded their presence in the region: The Boring Company will construct Dubai’s underground loop system, Emirates is upgrading its aircraft in-flight Wi-Fi using Starlink, and Neuralink plans to launch clinical trials for its brain-computer interface in Abu Dhabi.
The IPO window presents compelling value, with geopolitical risks failing to dampen investor appetite
SpaceX's IPO holds particular significance for Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds—it marks the first genuine value realization milestone following their years-long investments in the AI industrial chain.
Despite ongoing regional conflict involving Iranian attacks on Gulf states, sovereign wealth funds have continued advancing their deployment strategies, actively pursuing transactions in alternative asset management, private credit, technology platforms, and artificial intelligence.
Notably, the Iran conflict could impede domestic AI development efforts in Gulf countries, potentially further strengthening their motivation to allocate capital toward high-quality overseas assets.
Meanwhile, OpenAI announced this Monday that it has confidentially filed its IPO application, and Anthropic also completed a confidential filing last week. According to estimates, if these three companies proceed with listings, they would collectively add approximately $3.6 trillion in market capitalization to U.S. exchanges.