Nasdaq just did something it's never done:
it rang the bell in two cities at once 馃敂馃敂
The biggest IPO in history got an opening ceremony to match. For the first time ever, Nasdaq held a dual opening-bell ceremony: Elon Musk rang it remotely from Starbase, Texas, while SpaceX President and COO Gwynne Shotwell and CFO Bret Johnsen rang the traditional bell at the Nasdaq MarketSite in New York. The reason for the two-city spectacle is the part that actually matters - SPCX is listing on both the Nasdaq and the new Nasdaq Texas exchange.
Live from the morning of June 12, 2026. Ceremony details per Nasdaq and reporting on the debut. This is editorial commentary, not investment advice.
The traditional Times Square bell, with SpaceX leadership on the podium.
Musk marked the moment from SpaceX HQ - tying the listing to the new Nasdaq Texas venue.
Why two cities, and not just one bell?
Opening-bell ceremonies are usually one podium, one city, one photo. SpaceX got two - and it wasn't vanity. The company now headquarters at Starbase, Texas, and its listing spans Nasdaq's flagship market in New York and Nasdaq Texas, the exchange's newer Dallas-anchored venue. A dual listing gets a dual ceremony: one bell where Wall Street has always rung, and one planted firmly in the state SpaceX calls home.
That's why Musk stayed in Texas while his finance chiefs took New York. The optics are the message: the most valuable debut in market history is also a marquee win for Texas's push to become a real second center of gravity for U.S. listings. For Nasdaq, putting its single biggest IPO ever on both venues at once is the loudest possible advertisement that Nasdaq Texas is open for the largest business there is.
The symbolism in one line: a Texas-headquartered company, ringing a Texas bell, on a Texas exchange, for the biggest IPO ever - while New York rings the other end. Nasdaq has never split its bell across two cities before today.
Still a ceremony - the trade is the thing to watch
For all the pageantry, the two bells didn't start trading any more than one would have. As we covered in the bell-ring breakdown, the opening cross runs on its own clock - and the live indication has firmed up around $175 a share, roughly 30% above the $135 IPO price. The confetti is symbolic; the cross is the event.
So enjoy the two-city show for what it is - a genuine market first and a real statement about where listings are heading - but keep one eye on the tape. The number that resets SpaceX's valuation isn't rung by a bell in Texas or New York. It's printed by the opening cross, and it's pointing up hard.
The 60-second version
Nasdaq held its first-ever dual opening-bell ceremony for SpaceX - Musk remote from Starbase, Texas; Shotwell and CFO Bret Johnsen at the New York MarketSite.
The reason is a dual listing: SPCX trades on both the Nasdaq and the new Nasdaq Texas exchange - a marquee win for Texas's bid to become a listings hub.
It's still a ceremony, not a trade. The opening cross is indicated near $175 - about 30% above the $135 IPO price - and that's the number that actually moves the valuation.
Part of our SpaceX IPO Live Blog 路 the live thread: the $175 indicated open 路 the 9:50 opening-cross mechanics 路 the pre-bell explainer.
Hear the SPCX debut explained - the moment it prints.
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