{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"Barenaked Money","title":"151: IPO Games and SpaceX","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":1884,"description":"Why Retail Investors Should Avoid IPOs (SpaceX, OpenAI, and Index Inclusion Games)\nJosh Sheluk and Colin White of Verecan Capital’s Barenaked Money explain what an IPO is, why companies go public, and the trade-offs versus staying private, including disclosure requirements and transparency. They argue retail investors should generally avoid IPOs because offerings are structured to favor insiders and investment banks, often rely on hype and limited float to influence valuation, lack a meaningful public track record, and tend to lose money or underperform the market on average—especially for buyers who can’t access the IPO price. Using SpaceX as a timely example, they discuss its extreme valuation, heavy losses, and the unusual, accelerated index-inclusion process and float adjustments that invite complex “gamesmanship” by large traders, making it a risky arena for individuals. They conclude markets can still build wealth, but it’s better to avoid IPO speculation.00:00 Should You Invest\n00:08 Podcast Intro\n00:50 What Is an IPO\n02:11 Public vs Private\n06:10 Why IPOs Are Risky\n09:21 IPO Data and Odds\n12:06 SpaceX and Mega IPOs\n14:51 Index Inclusion Games\n20:44 Float and Weighting\n27:32 Final Takeaways\n29:45 Outro and Disclosures","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/HKm4C3awkHkaiv9_Dp4iTfbQWZWWM-hkdx2wgJb_fz0/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS82Y2Zj/N2E4MDA3NzJlNzM2/YmZjZTg3OTU4ZTdm/NTQ2Ny5wbmc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}