Major cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin (BTC), XRP, and Ethereum (ETH) are having another bad day.
As of the time of this writing, those coins are down 3.3%, 1.9%, and 4.9%, respectively, over the past 24 hours. And that decline is just a continuation of a fall that has been going on for much of the past week.
The thing is, events outside of the crypto market may be behind the most recent fall. Here’s how and why upcoming tech IPOs from companies like SpaceX may be driving crypto prices lower.
Crypto prices continue months of decline
Today’s early-morning decline in crypto values, unfortunately, is just par for the course lately. And it’s been that way for much of 2026.
Since the year began, nearly every major token has taken a significant beating. As of the time of this writing, year-to-date, Bitcoin has lost 23% of its value, XRP has lost 32%, Ethereum has lost 36%, BNB has lost 25%, and even meme coin Dogecoin has lost 19%.
Those steep losses are due to a variety of factors, including fears that geopolitical conflicts could sink the economy, uncertainty over the future of crypto regulation, and ongoing concerns that we may be in an AI bubble that could sink markets.
But what’s interesting is that some of crypto’s steepest losses have come in just the last five trading days. During that short timeframe, Bitcoin has declined 8.3%, XRP and Ethereum are down 6.5% each, and Doge is down 5.4%.
There’s also something else that has happened within that period, too: hype and expectations have risen for SpaceX’s imminent IPO. And that public offering may be one reason why crypto is seeing further declines this week.
The SpaceX effect on crypto
Back in May, Elon Musk’s SpaceX publicly filed for its long-anticipated initial public offering.
The stock listing is expected to occur on or around June 12 and is widely expected to be the largest in history. Current valuations are putting SpaceX’s potential market cap at $1.75 trillion, with fans and followers of Musk believing the company’s future value may soar to the stars.
And SpaceX is just the beginning.
Two other major tech IPOs are also expected this year. Those are from AI giants OpenAI and Anthropic.
Both the ChatGPT maker and the Claude AI maker are expected to debut on the stock market between September and November of this year. And, like SpaceX, the hype surrounding these IPOs is off the charts.
All this tech IPO hype has led to a lot of FOMO. If these IPOs are going to mint hundreds of new millionaires and even billionaires, investors don’t want to miss out on that. But in order to invest in these companies, you need cash to buy the stocks first.
And that’s where cryptocurrencies—and this week’s fall in crypto come in.
As noted by CNBC, the current selloff in crypto may have more to do with the SpaceX IPO than with the cryptocurrencies themselves. Investors may be liquidating their crypto assets in order to have cash ready to buy into the SpaceX IPO in a few weeks.
As the trading desk at digital asset and crypto trading firm QCP Capital told CNBC, “The broader issue is liquidity rotation. Crypto is facing competition for capital as equity markets continue to outperform, with both crypto-native investors and traditional asset managers being pulled toward stronger equity narratives.”
That equity market competition is only likely to continue as SpaceX’s IPO nears, and Anthropic’s and OpenAI’s IPOs follow months later.
Tech IPO hype worries analysts, too
It’s worth noting that pulling cash out of the digital token market and throwing it at SpaceX (or any company that goes public this year) doesn’t guarantee a healthy return on investment.
Many industry watchers expect SpaceX’s IPO price to reflect a total company valuation of around $1.75 trillion. But many also think the valuation could be too high, given that the company doesn’t yet make a profit.
That’s why some analysts are cautioning investors not to jump into SpaceX’s IPO and instead to wait for the stock to reach a more reasonable price after its debut.
Analysts at Morningstar consider SpaceX “significantly overvalued,” CNBC reported on Tuesday, and noted that “investors will have opportunities to buy the stock at more attractive levels after the IPO.”
The investment research firm puts SpaceX’s fair value at around $780 billion, well below the $1.75 trillion touted by many.
And if those analysts are right, SpaceX’s stock price could fall in the weeks after trading begins as investors realize the spaceflight company was way overvalued.
What this means is that for those who are pulling their money out of crypto to invest in SpaceX’s IPO, there’s no guarantee that they’ll come out ahead financially.
Disclosure: Morningstar was founded by Joe Mansueto, owner of Fast Company parent Mansueto Ventures.
