Coinbase Launches Pre-IPO Perps, Starting with Elon Musk's SpaceX
Summary
Coinbase is launching perpetual futures for pre-IPO private companies, starting with SpaceX, and allowing eligible users outside the U.S. to trade 24/7 with USDC settlement and no expiry. The contracts let traders go long or short on a company’s estimated valuation before its public debut, then automatically convert when the IPO happens. Coinbase says the product is meant to improve price discovery and will add more listings soon, including firms in tech, AI, energy, and space. The launch comes amid reports that SpaceX’s expected IPO could make Elon Musk the first trillionaire. Perpetual futures have become popular in crypto because they let traders speculate without owning the underlying asset.
