Korean Investors Go Wild for SpaceX: W1.2 Trillion Sold in Debut

Day-one buying exceeds US retail demand by more than fivefold.

South Korean retail investors went on a buying spree, snapping up more than 1 trillion won ($661 million) worth of SpaceX shares on the company's stock market debut. Elon Musk's space firm has become a hot favorite among local investors, making it one of the biggest overseas stock purchases by Korean retail investors in recent years.

It's a rare feat for a single US-listed stock to attract more than 1 trillion won in net buying from Korean retail investors in a single session. According to financial industry sources, Korean retail investors bought a net 1.2 trillion won worth of SpaceX shares on June 12, the first day of trading, through 11 brokerages.

The buying spree dwarfed retail demand in the US market. US retail investors purchased a net $117 million to $118 million worth of SpaceX shares on the first trading day. Despite many US investors receiving IPO allocations directly, Korean retail investors still purchased more than five times as much SpaceX stock in the secondary market.

The day's second-most purchased asset among Korean investors was the ProShares UltraPro QQQ ETF, which recorded net purchases of just $24.9 million. Prior to SpaceX's debut, the most heavily bought overseas security this month was the Direxion Daily Semiconductors Bull 3X Shares ETF, which attracted net purchases of $514.2 million.

SpaceX shares were priced at $135 in the IPO and opened at $150. The stock climbed as high as $176 before closing at $161.11, up 19.3 percent from the offering price. Based on the first day closing price, Korean retail investors are estimated to have accumulated roughly 5 million shares.

The momentum continued after the debut, with SpaceX gaining another 19.6 percent on June 15, its second trading day. Net purchases by Korean retail investors over the first two trading sessions are expected to exceed 2 trillion won.

SpaceX's debut has vaulted the company into the ranks of the 30 most widely held US stocks, joining a group dominated by Big Tech names like Nvidia, Tesla, Apple, Microsoft, and Alphabet.

By Choi Yeon-jae ([email protected])