Australia’s wealthiest individual, mining billionaire Gina Rinehart, has acquired a stake worth more than $1 billion in Elon Musk’s SpaceX through the company’s record-breaking $75 billion initial public offering, the Wall Street Journal reported Monday, citing a source with knowledge of the deal.
Rinehart’s firm, Hancock Prospecting, declined to confirm the exact size of its investment. However, Rinehart released a statement acknowledging the move: “This is a significant investment for Hancock, and we are pleased to have received an allocation in what has been an extremely popular and oversubscribed IPO.”
She went on to credit Musk with building two of the world’s ten largest companies and described SpaceX as a standout business opportunity.
“We see SpaceX as a rare business: led by a truly exceptional person, technically exceptional and operating in sectors that are crucial, and with long-term potential,” Rinehart said. Her fortune was built on iron ore extracted through her company, Hancock Prospecting.
Hancock, which holds major stakes in critical minerals ventures, has expressed hopes of partnering with SpaceX on mineral supply needs. Hancock CEO Garry Korte elaborated on that vision in the same statement: “In the future, we also see the possibility of mutually beneficial arrangements between SpaceX and Hancock Prospecting’s significant critical minerals investments, as demand grows for the materials and infrastructure needed to support advanced technology.”
The company holds notable positions in a range of rare earths businesses, including U.S.-based MP Materials and Rare Earths Americas, as well as Australia’s Lynas Rare Earths and lithium producer Liontown Resources, among others. Recent filings showed that Hancock expanded its defense, gold, and rare-earths holdings within its $3.3 billion U.S. investment portfolio earlier this year.
The SpaceX investment paid off quickly for Rinehart. Shares jumped 19% on their debut last Friday, vaulting the company’s total value past $2 trillion and making it the sixth-largest U.S. company. Investors rushed to get exposure to Musk’s wide-ranging business empire, which spans rockets, satellites, and artificial intelligence.
Beyond praising Musk’s business achievements, Rinehart also called him a patriot for his role in cutting federal government jobs through President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE.
“SpaceX is yet another clear example of why the world needs more enterprise, more builders and much less bureaucracy,” Rinehart said.
Rinehart herself has become more politically active in recent years, reportedly encouraging some of Australia’s wealthiest voters to shift their support away from the country’s opposition Liberal-National conservatives toward the populist, anti-migration party One Nation.
