By the time most retail investors get access to blockbuster IPOs, the biggest gains may already be gone. That's the argument Tessera PE CEO Chan Ahn is making as debates intensify around SpaceX's public offering.
SpaceX's rise from roughly $350 billion to a reported $1.75 trillion-$2 trillion IPO target highlights a growing imbalance in modern markets, Ahn told MarketDash.
"SpaceX compounded from roughly $350 billion to a reported $1.75–2 trillion IPO target — that's 5x appreciation that happened entirely while retail was locked out," the former Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan executive said. He called it "the biggest wealth-creation event of a generation."
IPO Access Versus IPO Illusion
Ahn argues the issue goes beyond allocation size. Even when companies reserve shares for retail buyers, oversubscribed deals often leave ordinary investors with only tiny positions.
"Allocation is not the same as access," he said, comparing some IPO participation to "a lottery ticket."
According to Ahn, today's market increasingly splits investors into three groups:
- Private-market insiders are restricted by lockups,
- Retail IPO buyers are receiving limited allocations,
- And public-market investors are arriving after most of the appreciation has already occurred.
"That's not a conspiracy," Ahn said. "It's just plumbing."
Tokenization May Solve The Problem
Ahn expects tokenized private-market investing to solve the problem by allowing smaller investors earlier exposure before IPOs.
The timing may matter. Tokenized real-world assets have surpassed $27 billion as of April 2026, reflecting growing institutional and retail interest in blockchain-based ownership structures.
If that trend continues, SpaceX's eventual IPO may become less about the company itself and more about whether Wall Street's traditional access model is breaking down.
