SpaceX Files IPO Papers Showing Related-Party Leases With Valor Equity Partners

SpaceX filed an S-1 registration statement that includes details of three lease agreements signed between October 2025 and April 2026 by an xAI subsidiary and Valor Equity Partners entities controlled by board member Antonio Gracias. The agreements cover graphics processing units for data centers and obligate the xAI subsidiary to pay Valor close to $20 billion over the lease terms.

SpaceX guarantees the payments, and the company has already paid Valor roughly $885 million in 2025 and $857 million in the first two months of 2026.

SpaceX's auditor PwC classified the transactions as a "failed sale leaseback" and recorded $9 billion as related-party debt on SpaceX's balance sheet. 3 percent of the company. The S-1 does not include language stating that the Valor lease terms are "no less favorable" than those available from an unaffiliated party, a phrase the filing uses in its description of SpaceX's dealings with Tesla.

The document also does not state whether Gracias recused himself from board votes on the leases.

SpaceX plans to list on Nasdaq under a new "Fast Entry" rule adopted in March that allows large IPOs to join the Nasdaq 100 after 15 trading days. The company reincorporated in Texas in 2024, and its charter provides that Musk can be removed from leadership positions only by holders of Class B stock.

SpaceX will qualify as a "controlled company" under Nasdaq rules, exempting it from requirements that a majority of directors be independent. Gracias is scheduled to join the compensation and nominating committee. Valor Equity Partners and SpaceX did not respond to requests for comment on the lease arrangements.