This longtime Musk ally and SpaceX investor is sitting on a $90 billion jackpot

Antonio Gracias, a long-time confidant of Elon Musk and an influential figure in the business world, stands on the brink of a staggering financial windfall due to SpaceX's impending IPO. According to the latest S-1 filing, Gracias holds over 500 million shares of SpaceX stock through his investment firm, Valor Equity Partners. This translates to an estimated 7.3% stake in SpaceX's Class A stock prior to the IPO, potentially valued at around $91.6 billion if the company achieves the projected $1.5 trillion valuation. Gracias's connection with Musk dates back more than 20 years, stemming from their initial encounters in Silicon Valley and PayPal circles shortly after Musk's sale of PayPal to eBay. While building Valor Equity Partners in 1995, Gracias became one of Musk's most trusted advisors, supporting him through various challenges faced by Tesla and SpaceX. During critical financial struggles at Tesla, especially in the late 2000s and during the tumultuous Model 3 production phase, Gracias was a staunch defender in the boardroom. As Musk's ventures expanded into new frontiers like rockets, AI, and infrastructure, Gracias's loyalty paid off. Valor became an early institutional investor in SpaceX, gradually increasing its stake over the years as the company thrived in the private sector. The recent filing further reveals that subsidiaries linked to Musk’s xAI have entered into almost $20 billion worth of equipment lease agreements with entities affiliated with Valor for AI and computing infrastructure. These agreements have already begun generating substantial revenue for Valor-related entities. The ownership landscape at SpaceX remains closely held among Musk's tight-knit circle. Notably, Luke Nosek, a fellow PayPal alumnus and early Musk associate, holds nearly 33 million shares, estimated to be worth about $6 billion at the IPO valuation. Nosek played a pivotal role during their PayPal days and has since co-founded Gigafund, a venture firm known for its investments in cutting-edge technologies. Gwynne Shotwell, SpaceX's president, also has a significant stake, owning around 12.6 million shares valued at approximately $2.3 billion. Other notable figures in this circle include Ira Ehrenpreis, with about 1.37 million shares worth around $250 million, and Randy Glein, who possesses about 278,000 shares valued at roughly $50 million. This concentrated ownership underscores the strong ties between Musk and his earliest supporters as they stand ready to benefit immensely from SpaceX's future successes.