According to a Bloomberg report on June 30 citing insiders, Mirae Asset Securities, South Korea's largest brokerage, became the only one among the 23 underwriters of SpaceX's largest-ever IPO to receive zero allocation. Approximately $1.14 billion in subscription orders from Korean customers showed zero formal orders in the systems of Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and Citigroup, with the final allocation also being zero shares.
Timeline of the Two Emails and the Root Cause of the Misunderstanding
According to the Bloomberg report, the misunderstanding of 'Project Apex' began in mid-May 2026. Before the formal bookbuilding started, the lead underwriters sent an email to the 23 underwriters, asking each to report initial demand indications from their investors through a virtual data room. This is a standard step in large IPO processes to gather demand signals, not a formal order submission point.
Insiders said that when Mirae Asset responded to this email, it mistakenly believed that this action was equivalent to completing a formal order. In fact, formal orders needed to be submitted only after the second invitation letter sent by the lead underwriters in June, which is the real order submission point in industry practice. In the lead underwriters' system records, the number of formal retail customer orders from Mirae Asset was zero.
Specific Process from $1.14 Billion in Orders to Zero Allocation
Before the misunderstanding occurred, Mirae Asset had already carried out the following steps:
April 2026: Confirmed that SpaceX could not directly open subscriptions to Korean retail investors, and instead turned to private placements to solicit orders from specific institutions and high-net-worth clients.
May 20, 2026: SpaceX filed documents with the US SEC showing that the Korean market would subscribe through private placements. Mirae Asset's Seoul team viewed this as an official green light.
Order Collection: Mirae Asset gradually collected subscription orders from Korean clients, totaling approximately $1.14 billion.
Discovery of Zero Allocation: When staff logged into the lead underwriters' system, they found that the allocation column under the company's name showed zero shares. Insiders said this was a "completely unexpected" shock to the entire team.
Comparison with Other Korean Institutions: NPS and Mirae Asset Global Investments Got Allocations
According to Bloomberg, the outcome for other Korean investors was completely different: Korea's National Pension Service (NPS, with over $1 trillion in assets under management) and Mirae Asset Global Investments, also under the Mirae Asset Group, both successfully obtained allocations through the lead underwriters' channels. This contrast led FSS Governor Lee Chan-jin to state on June 22, "It is still difficult to understand" why Mirae Asset ended up empty-handed, and said that he had originally expected Korean professional investors to "of course" receive allocations.
Frequently Asked Questions
Was Mirae Asset's misunderstanding a communication failure by the lead underwriters or an operational responsibility of Mirae Asset?
Bloomberg's report characterized this as a communication gap and pointed to it as the most critical link in a chain of misunderstandings between Mirae Asset and the lead underwriters. Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, and Mirae Asset all declined to comment to Bloomberg. As of the report, there was no official statement on responsibility.
How was the $1.14 billion in order funds collected from clients handled by Mirae Asset?
In an apology statement, the vice chairman of Mirae Asset promised to review operational processes and formulate measures to "restore consumer trust," but as of the report, did not specify the specific refund mechanism or compensation arrangements for client funds.
What is the scope and possible consequences of the FSS investigation?
The FSS investigation initially targeted the eligibility requirements of the participating investors, and later expanded to include the entire process by which Mirae Asset failed to secure allocations. The FSS governor publicly stated that this case was difficult to understand. As of the report, the investigation results have not been made public, but this is an official inspection process, and subsequent penalties may be imposed.
