Space Exploration Technologies Corp., also known as SpaceX, spearheaded by Elon Musk, has apparently accepted investment from Chinese entities, despite Musk’s public rants against special interest money in politics.
The assertive stance on rejecting said funds, demonstrated by Musk on Twitter, is in stark contrast to the evidence that suggests otherwise. This discrepancy was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.
A closer look reveals that none other than Baillie Gifford & Co, a Scotland-based investment management firm elicited in this admissions scandal, with 7.6% of its stake in SpaceX, is owned by a Hong Kong-listed company, which in turn, is 25% owned by Chinese investors.
The Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust reported that it provides Chinese investors indirect access to Tesla and SpaceX via this Hong Kong-listed company, a fact enclosed in its regular filings.
Another stakeholder, Sequoia Capital, has China’s National Social Security Fund as one of its cornerstone investors, adding further to the controversial entanglements. Sequoia has contributed to several funding rounds for SpaceX.
Given Musk’s previous condemnation of ill-intent lobbying and interest money, these sophisticated links to Chinese investments have often been downplayed. In January 2021, when lobbying groups associated with the Chinese government donated to the inauguration of President Joe Biden, Musk displayed his reservations openly on Twitter, voicing concerns about foreign governments’ influence in U.S. policy.
However, it seems that through more intricate investment channels, Musk’s companies, indirectly yet notably, do benefit from Chinese investments. Such patterns of capital influx remain largely undetected due to their complex, indirect nature, which is typically not thoroughly scrutinized by U.S. regulatory bodies.
These revelations, bringing into light Elon Musk’s apparent acceptance of Chinese funding through third parties, inevitably raise questions regarding the transparency of SpaceX’s funding, especially given Musk’s public pronouncements.
Last modified: March 29, 2025
