A growing number of everyday accredited investors are buying into private companies like SpaceX through online marketplaces before they go public. George, a Los Angeles entertainment professional, put $150,000 into a SpaceX special purpose vehicle on Hiive and added $45,000 into xAI, with the combined stake worth $750,000 by July. Platforms such as Hiive, Forge, and EquityZen bundle employee or early-investor shares into SPVs, selling access for a fee to investors meeting the accredited threshold of $1 million net worth or $200,000 annual income, a group that has grown to 18.5% of U.S. households. Wall Street has taken notice, with Charles Schwab buying Forge and Morgan Stanley buying EquityZen, while Washington moves to further widen access, including an executive order easing 401(k) private investments. Critics warn that many buyers do not understand the share classes they are getting or the layered fees that can take 5% to 10% upfront plus 20% to 30% of profits, and point to failures like Linqto, which went bankrupt after marking up shares by as much as 60% without customers actually owning the securities.
Morgan Stanley
Charles Schwab Corp