Musk Looks at SpaceX IPO in 2013, Holding Company with Tesla

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and NASA Administrator Charles Bolden in front of the Dragon capsule. (Credit: NASA)

Bloomberg reports on a possibility with big implications for SpaceX and Tesla Motors:

Elon Musk, co-founder of Tesla Motors Inc. (TSLA) and founder of Space Exploration Technologies Corp., said he’s interested in creating a holding company for shares of his electric car and rocket launch businesses.

“Am starting to consider whether it would make sense to create a parent corporation that would own the stock,” Musk said today in a Web chat on jalopnik.com. “Not sure if that is feasible or sensible, but am thinking about it.”

Musk, 41, who is Palo Alto, California-based Tesla’s chief executive officer and biggest investor, has said an initial public offering of his aerospace company, known as SpaceX, may happen next year.

Tesla Motors is already a public company. An IPO for SpaceX would be the first “NewSpace” company to go public. If successful, the IPO would be a milestone that could pave the way for a lot more venture capital investment in start-up space companies.

The impact on SpaceX would be interesting to watch as well. Reports indicate that SpaceX’s mostly young employees are worked very, very hard. If the IPO is successful and employees with shares suddenly find themselves sitting on a fortune, how many would be tempted to leave? SpaceX could find itself losing a lot of experienced people just when it needs them the most to ramp up production of Dragon spacecraft and Falcon launch vehicles.