Robinhood sees record traffic after SpaceX's historic market debut
What's the story
Robinhood, the popular trading platform, has reported "record-breaking" traffic on its services on Friday, June 12, 2026. The surge in activity comes after SpaceX's historic public market debut. The company revealed the news through a post on X, noting that "some customers experienced latency and intermittent issues" while trading. However, they assured users that these issues were resolved quickly and their platform was back up and running smoothly.
Market impact
Robinhood experiences unprecedented trading volume
SpaceX's shares started trading on the NASDAQ at around 11:47am ET on June 12. The initial response was overwhelmingly positive, with the company's valuation exceeding $2 trillion and making Elon Musk the world's first trillionaire. In just one hour, some 263 million shares were traded, according to NASDAQ data. This massive trading volume contributed to a spike in traffic on Robinhood's platform as investors rushed to buy and sell SpaceX stock.
Trading strategy
SpaceX's IPO and impact on other space stocks
For its IPO, SpaceX only offered about 4% of its shares for trading. This limited supply could lead to extreme fluctuations in the company's stock price as it navigates its new status as a public company. Amid an initial surge, other space stocks that had rallied ahead of SpaceX's debut took a hit on Friday. Rocket Lab's stock fell by 10.8%, while Intuitive Machines and Planet Labs saw declines of 13.1% and 8.8%, respectively.
Stock performance
US stock market and SpaceX's performance
US stocks ended higher on Friday, buoyed by hopes for a peace deal between Iran and the US. The news of SpaceX's shares debut also contributed to the positive market sentiment. SpaceX's shares closed up 19.2% at $160.95, well above its IPO price of $135 per share. Its market capitalization was last at $2.1 trillion, making it one of the biggest publicly listed US companies.