When Elon Musk was in crisis, This man loaned $1 million. Now he is set to be...
Elon Musk's long-time friend and investor Antonio Gracias could emerge as one of the biggest winners from SpaceX's planned IPO. The listing has put fresh focus on the ally who backed Musk's companies when their future was uncertain.
- Jun 11, 2026,
- Updated Jun 11, 2026 5:14 PM IST
For years, one of Elon Musk’s most important allies worked largely out of sight — backing his companies when success was far from certain and even helping tackle problems on Tesla’s factory floor. That investor is Antonio Gracias, founder and chief executive of Chicago-based growth equity firm Valor Equity Partners, whose early and sustained support for Musk’s ventures could now lead to one of the biggest private-investment windfalls if SpaceX goes ahead with its planned market debut.
Valor and related entities controlled by Gracias hold a SpaceX stake worth about $65 billion based on the company’s target initial public offering valuation of $1.77 trillion, according to The New York Times. That would make Valor the second-largest disclosed shareholder after Musk. Gracias first invested in SpaceX in 2008, when the company was still trying to prove that a private rocket business could work, and he continued to add to that position while serving on its board.
Who is Antonio Gracias?
Gracias, 55, is not just a long-time investor in Musk’s companies. He has also been one of Musk’s closest associates for more than two decades. The two first moved in the same PayPal circles in the early 2000s. Valor became one of Tesla’s earliest institutional investors in 2005, and Gracias later joined the boards of both Tesla and SpaceX. Forbes has estimated that Valor has about $16 billion in gross assets. He started Valor’s predecessor, MG Capital, in 1995 while studying law at the University of Chicago.
His role went well beyond writing cheques and attending board meetings. Gracias built a reputation for hands-on investing and, during difficult periods at Tesla, even slept on the factory floor while helping address manufacturing and supply-chain issues. During the 2008 financial crisis, when both Tesla and SpaceX were under pressure, Musk said that Gracias provided a $1 million short-term loan.
In a recent post on X, Musk wrote that Gracias’s ownership came from “absolute support, even when it looked like SpaceX would fail” and called him a close friend. Much of Gracias’s personal wealth already comes from Tesla, where he served as a director from 2007 to 2021.
He also helped finance Musk’s 2022 acquisition of Twitter and later assisted with restructuring at the social media platform. That record has made him one of Musk’s earliest and most consistent financial supporters, and the proposed SpaceX listing has brought fresh attention to his role in backing the entrepreneur’s companies at key moments.
About the SpaceX IPO
SpaceX is expected to price its IPO at $135 a share, valuing the company at about $1.77 trillion. The company could raise as much as $75 billion, which would make it the biggest stock market debut in history. More than 4,400 current and former employees could become millionaires through their holdings, and about 400 could hold stock worth more than $100 million.
While most IPOs reserve only 5 to 10 per cent of shares for retail investors, the SpaceX listing could set aside as much as 30 per cent. Fidelity investors with as little as $2,000 in their accounts may be eligible to participate. Musk owns about 42 per cent of SpaceX, a stake worth about $740 billion at the target valuation.
For years, one of Elon Musk’s most important allies worked largely out of sight — backing his companies when success was far from certain and even helping tackle problems on Tesla’s factory floor. That investor is Antonio Gracias, founder and chief executive of Chicago-based growth equity firm Valor Equity Partners, whose early and sustained support for Musk’s ventures could now lead to one of the biggest private-investment windfalls if SpaceX goes ahead with its planned market debut.
Valor and related entities controlled by Gracias hold a SpaceX stake worth about $65 billion based on the company’s target initial public offering valuation of $1.77 trillion, according to The New York Times. That would make Valor the second-largest disclosed shareholder after Musk. Gracias first invested in SpaceX in 2008, when the company was still trying to prove that a private rocket business could work, and he continued to add to that position while serving on its board.
Who is Antonio Gracias?
Gracias, 55, is not just a long-time investor in Musk’s companies. He has also been one of Musk’s closest associates for more than two decades. The two first moved in the same PayPal circles in the early 2000s. Valor became one of Tesla’s earliest institutional investors in 2005, and Gracias later joined the boards of both Tesla and SpaceX. Forbes has estimated that Valor has about $16 billion in gross assets. He started Valor’s predecessor, MG Capital, in 1995 while studying law at the University of Chicago.
His role went well beyond writing cheques and attending board meetings. Gracias built a reputation for hands-on investing and, during difficult periods at Tesla, even slept on the factory floor while helping address manufacturing and supply-chain issues. During the 2008 financial crisis, when both Tesla and SpaceX were under pressure, Musk said that Gracias provided a $1 million short-term loan.
In a recent post on X, Musk wrote that Gracias’s ownership came from “absolute support, even when it looked like SpaceX would fail” and called him a close friend. Much of Gracias’s personal wealth already comes from Tesla, where he served as a director from 2007 to 2021.
He also helped finance Musk’s 2022 acquisition of Twitter and later assisted with restructuring at the social media platform. That record has made him one of Musk’s earliest and most consistent financial supporters, and the proposed SpaceX listing has brought fresh attention to his role in backing the entrepreneur’s companies at key moments.
About the SpaceX IPO
SpaceX is expected to price its IPO at $135 a share, valuing the company at about $1.77 trillion. The company could raise as much as $75 billion, which would make it the biggest stock market debut in history. More than 4,400 current and former employees could become millionaires through their holdings, and about 400 could hold stock worth more than $100 million.
While most IPOs reserve only 5 to 10 per cent of shares for retail investors, the SpaceX listing could set aside as much as 30 per cent. Fidelity investors with as little as $2,000 in their accounts may be eligible to participate. Musk owns about 42 per cent of SpaceX, a stake worth about $740 billion at the target valuation.