SpaceX, the private aerospace manufacturer and space transport services company founded by Elon Musk, has been allowing its employees to cash out some of their shares through secondary sales to authorized outside investors. An internal document obtained by TechCrunch provides insight into one such tender offer from May 2022, revealing the investors who benefited from the discounted share prices.

In this secondary sale, investors paid $70 per share to employees, a significant bargain compared to the share prices investors pay in primary rounds. During the primary sale in 2022, shares went for $270. The main reason for the discounted price is that employees own common stock, while investors who buy into primary rounds typically purchase preferred stock, which entitles them to dividends and liquidation preferences.

The document also reveals that if SpaceX were to sell itself, the first $6.67 billion would be owed to preferred shareholders. Since then, the company has raised another $750 million, increasing the sum owed to investors. However, if SpaceX commands its current valuation of $350 billion, these liquidation preferences won't be a problem for employees or common stock shareholders. But if the company were to go for an under-$7 billion fire sale, common stockholders could get nothing.

In terms of dividends, internal documents show that SpaceX never paid any as of 2019. But if its board of directors were to declare dividends, they would be paid out in fixed amounts based on when investors bought shares. The amounts range from a few pennies per share for shares bought in early and cheap rounds to over $10 a share for those bought in later and more expensive rounds.

For employees, the news about their shares in 2022 was especially good. In February 2022, SpaceX did a 10-for-1 stock split of its Class A, B, and C common shares. The preferred shares were not split. The documents don't make clear what the differences are between the different classes of common shares. In public companies, different classes often have different voting rights.

Another bit of good news for employees in this sale was that the $70 per share price was an improvement over the previous tender of $56 when adjusting for the stock split. Bloomberg also reported that the next tender offer may be as high as $108 to $110 apiece.

The document reveals that only a handful of investors were authorized to buy shares, most of whom are vocal supporters of Elon Musk or have had close ties to the company. These investors include Andreessen Horowitz, Aliya Capital Partners, Gigafund, 137 Ventures, Point 2 Prove Investment, Atreides Management, and TCP Exploration Fund 2022. Each of these investors has a significant stake in SpaceX, with some having invested in other Musk companies as well.

Andreessen Horowitz, for example, was authorized to buy nearly 4.3 million shares for almost $300 million. The firm's co-founder, Marc Andreessen, has known Musk for decades and has become a vocal supporter of the SpaceX and Tesla CEO. Aliya Capital Partners, associated with Aliya Growth Fund, was authorized to buy just over 1.4 million shares for nearly $100 million. Aliya is a family office that says SpaceX is one of its largest holdings and has also invested in other prized startups.

Gigafund, whose co-founder is a SpaceX board member, was allocated over 1.4 million shares at a cost of nearly $100 million. 137 Ventures, associated with 137 Holdings, was authorized to buy just under 1.1 million shares at a cost of nearly $75 million. Point 2 Prove Investment was allocated 1 million shares, which cost $70 million. Atreides Management was associated with Atreides Special Circumstances Fund, which was allocated nearly 429,000 shares at a cost of nearly $30 million. TCP Exploration Fund 2022 was allocated over 357,000 shares for nearly $25 million.

SpaceX and all of the funds did not respond to multiple requests for comment except for Atreides, which declined comment. The company's complex capital structure and secondary share sales provide a unique glimpse into the world of private company investing and the lucrative deals made by authorized investors.