Oregon treasurer raises concerns over risks to pensions in SpaceX IPO
Oregon treasurer raises concerns over risks to pensions in SpaceX IPO
Anastasia Mason, Salem Statesman JournalFri, June 12, 2026 at 12:29 AM UTC
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Oregon State Treasurer Elizabeth Steiner joined leaders from Illinois and Maryland in questioning stock market rule changes ahead of the highly-anticipated IPO of Elon Musk's SpaceX on June 12.
Steiner, Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs and Maryland State Comptroller Brooke Lierman penned a letter to Nasdaq President and CEO Adena Friedman on June 10. In it, they asked Nasdaq, a major stock exchange, to justify changes to its rules and explain the analysis behind them.
A new "fast-entry" rule allows, among other things, companies that have been recently listed as public to be added to the Nasdaq-100 after being traded for 15 days.
In her own statement, Steiner argued the rule change lowers accountability and says she wants to protect against "unnecessary market volatility and disproportionate risk" to public employee pensions, as well as index funds everyday people invest in.
Steiner said "Oregon teachers, firefighters, nurses and other beneficiaries—who entrust their assets to us to invest responsibly—will own SpaceX shares, through Treasury's participation in passive index funds."
Steiner, Frerichs and Lierman in their letter said they represent a combined 1.5 million people whose "retirement security depends on the long-term health of the U.S. public capital markets and stability of passive investment vehicles tracking indexes with reliable, tested inclusion methodologies."
A similar letter was sent to the London Stock Exchange Group and FTSE Russell by Frerichs, Lierman, New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli and New York City Comptroller Mark Levine, according to Reuters.
Reuters reported the sale of the $135 shares was the "biggest ever U.S. initial public offering," bringing in $75 billion. Initial public offerings mark the first time a private company sells its shares publicly.
The sale may make Musk the world's first trillionaire.
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"Public markets look fundamentally different than they did a decade ago — companies are staying private longer, listing at larger scale, and arriving with more complex share structures," a Nasdaq spokesperson told Reuters. "The updates to the Nasdaq-100 methodology reflect those shifts and were implemented following a formal public consultation.
"The changes were not designed for any single company, and are consistent with updates other major index providers have independently made in response to the same market dynamics."
Treasurer Elizabeth Steiner speaks after she is sworn in during a ceremony in 2025.
Read Steiner's full statement below:
"America's economy thrives when the rules apply to everyone and public companies are transparent and accountable to their shareholder owners. As one of the largest institutional investors in the nation (with more than $147 billion in assets under management), I am deeply troubled by the fast-entry rule changes some indexes have granted SpaceX's IPO and the transparency-limiting elements of SpaceX's offering.
Indices that have fast-tracked SpaceX's listing could force institutional investors to purchase stocks (through index funds) that have not proven their value or undergone the rigors of market correction. Retail investors who have holdings in index funds, such as families who are saving for higher education through 529 accounts, face similar exposure. We must be able to trust that appropriate measures are in place to protect our investments from unnecessary market volatility and disproportionate risk.
Oregon teachers, firefighters, nurses and other beneficiaries—who entrust their assets to us to invest responsibly—will own SpaceX shares, through Treasury's participation in passive index funds. However, SpaceX's IPO diminishes beneficiaries' voice by limiting management accountability, which can undermine a company's long-term performance and value.
SpaceX is not the first company to appear to reduce shareholder protections through its governance structure and may not be the last large IPO to benefit from the fast-entry rule. To protect shareholders, it's time for companies to end mechanisms that stifle accountability and for indices to ensure transparency and fairness in their listings."
REUTERS reporter Ross Kerber contributed to this report.
Anastasia Mason covers state government for the Statesman Journal. Reach her at acmason@statesmanjournal.com or 971-208-5615.
This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Oregon treasurer says SpaceX fast-tracked IPO may risk pensions
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