Most small investors cannot buy SpaceX shares; instead, institutional and high-net-worth individuals can buy shares. However, it is still possible to own a piece of SpaceX either directly or indirectly.
A straightforward way to buy SpaceX stock is to become a venture capital fund (VC) member investing in SpaceX. If you are an investor in a fund, you can access SpaceX shares.
However, there is a catch. You must be an accredited investor as defined by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The bottom line is you need to have an income of $200,000+ or $300,000+ with your spouse in the two most recent years. Alternatively, you can have a net worth of $1 million, but it can’t include your primary residence.
This hurdle prevents most people from buying SpaceX stock through VC funds. The number of people with an income of more than $200,000 is small. In the US, only the top 10% have median household incomes of more than $200,000. Few people have a net worth of $1,000,000, especially after excluding their primary home. According to the US Federal Reserve, the median net worth was $121,700 in 2019.
The Baillie Gifford trusts are a second way to buy SpaceX stock. The firm has two trusts that own SpaceX stock. The first trust is the Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust, and the second one is the US Growth Trust.
The Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust (SMT) is a publicly-traded trust on the London Stock Exchange (LSE). In addition, it is a part of the FTSE 100 Index. The trust was founded in 1909. The trust’s annual report from 2021 states, “We have continued to build our holdings in SpaceX.”
The US Growth Trust (USA) mainly owns stock options and reportedly has exposure to SpaceX. However, investing in trusts on the LSE may be difficult for US investors.
Probably the most straightforward and least risky way to gain exposure to SpaceX stock is by buying Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) stock. In 2015, Google invested $900 million with Fidelity Investments in SpaceX. At the time, the shares were worth almost 10% of SpaceX.