Unless you’ve been on the moon, you know that Elon Musk’s SpaceX just pulled off the biggest IPO of all time and raised about $86 billion in its public stock offering last month.
The reusable rocket maker did it while selling only a tiny sliver—between 4% and 5%—of its stock. The other 95%—which consists of about 12.5 billion shares—is being kept behind bars in one of the most byzantine, complicated lock-up schedules in history.
To level set, lock-up periods are standard fare following an IPO; founders, top executives, and early venture investors usually agree not to sell their shares for 180 days. The point, as IPO advisor Lise Buyer of Class V Group explains, is twofold. First, it forces the people who know the…
