SpaceX faces an often-overlooked issue ahead of its IPO application: its Bitcoin holdings.

At first glance, this story seems simple. SpaceX manages 8,285 Bitcoins through Coinbase Prime, and its current valuation is about $545 million. As of December, it was $780 million, meaning it dropped by $235 million over three months—despite the fact that not a single Bitcoin has been moved.

But this is the crucial part. SpaceX is aiming to submit a confidential IPO application to the SEC as early as March and plans to list in June. With a market capitalization of more than $1.75 trillion, it expects to raise up to $50 billion. This is far larger than the 2019 IPO of Saudi Aramco ($29 billion).

Of course, the IPO application will also include this Bitcoin position. In other words, investors in the public markets will be able to see SpaceX’s unrealized Bitcoin losses on its books. That’s the problem.

Look at Tesla to see the answer. Musk’s automaker has recorded valuation losses amounting to billions of dollars during past downturns, even though it never changed its position. As a result, recurring headline risk emerged, and attention ended up shifting away from the underlying business. SpaceX could face the same situation. The difference, however, is that the first disclosure will occur during one of Bitcoin’s steepest corrections in the past few years.

That said, given Tesla’s total revenue of $94.8 billion in 2025 and gross profit of $17 billion, it may be unlikely that a few million dollars in unrealized Bitcoin losses would have a major impact.

According to data from Arkham Intelligence, SpaceX’s BTC portfolio peaked at about $2 billion in the latter half of 2021 and then crashed throughout 2022. After that, it has fluctuated between $400 million and $800 million. What’s interesting is that while Tesla repeatedly sold and repurchased, SpaceX has simply held through every cycle. This suggests the company has long-term conviction in its Bitcoin holdings.

Ahead of the IPO application, the market is closely watching how disclosure of these crypto asset positions will be received.