A major shift in retail investing is unfolding as Republic, a New York-based fintech platform, begins offering tokenised access to pre-IPO shares of SpaceX.
The sale opens this week, allowing retail investors to buy digital tokens that represent shares in Elon Musk’s aerospace firm without holding actual ownership.
Token prices will be linked to secondary market performance, with Republic planning to extend similar access to other high-profile private firms like OpenAI, Anthropic, Stripe, Epic Games, and X.
The launch comes amid a surge of interest in tokenised finance under the pro-crypto regulatory shift of the Trump administration.
SpaceX token sale targets broader investor base
Republic’s tokenised offering allows investments between $50 and $5,000, significantly lower than the traditional private equity entry point of $10,000.
This initiative bypasses long-standing barriers, enabling non-accredited US retail investors to gain indirect exposure to some of the most sought-after tech firms.
Unlike traditional private equity, these blockchain-based tokens do not confer ownership but act as digital representations of share value, creating a new form of synthetic exposure.
The SpaceX tokens will be priced based on existing secondary markets where shares of the company are already exchanged by accredited investors.
Republic says the approach builds on long-established securities laws from the 1930s, leveraging existing legal frameworks to bring pre-IPO opportunities into the retail investing space.
Expansion plans include OpenAI, Stripe and Anthropic
Beyond SpaceX, Republic aims to expand its tokenised share model to other major private companies with large retail followings or consumer-facing products.
The next in line include artificial intelligence leaders OpenAI and Anthropic, digital payments giant Stripe, social platform X, Waymo, and game developer Epic Games.
Although, as per the company, it does not require direct consent from these companies to tokenise their shares, it acknowledges some firms may seek greater control over such offerings.
The company intends to comply with financial disclosure rules and will structure its products to fit within current regulatory allowances.
This method of tokenising shares is not entirely new but has been constrained until recently by regulatory pressure.
The current US administration’s pro-crypto stance has created conditions for accelerated innovation and new financial product models, including tokenised assets.
Regulatory landscape shifts under Trump’s crypto policies
The launch of Republic’s SpaceX token comes as part of a broader trend in the crypto sector, where regulatory attitudes are evolving rapidly.
Since President Donald Trump returned to office, US regulators have taken several steps to reduce enforcement in the digital asset space.
The Securities and Exchange Commission has closed investigations into companies like Robinhood Crypto, Uniswap, Gemini, and Consensys without enforcement action, and reduced the scope of its crypto enforcement unit.
New policies have included declarations that meme coins are not securities and the formation of a dedicated Crypto Task Force to examine asset regulation through roundtable discussions.
This change in direction has given crypto firms more freedom to experiment with tokenised financial products and created room for retail participation in formerly exclusive markets.
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