Chinese Military-Linked Investor Among SpaceX’s Early Private Backers, ProPublica Reveals
A businessman with ties to Chinese military contractors was among overseas investors who acquired stakes in SpaceX while it was still a private company, according to an investor list obtained by ProPublica. The documents, unsealed in a Delaware court case, also reveal investments from a Qatari royal family-linked entity and raise concerns about foreign influence in a company central to U.S. defense technology.
Regulatory Concerns Over Foreign Investments
SpaceX’s private investor list, obtained through a legal dispute involving Tomales Bay Capital, includes at least a dozen entities based in China, Hong Kong, or Russia. The investments, made between 2018 and 2021, ranged from $800,000 to $40 million. While no U.S. law explicitly bans Chinese investment in military contractors, the government has long scrutinized such ties due to fears of espionage and technology transfer.
“If an investor has conflicts of interests with other companies in China — if they could feed that information to competitors — it could be a national security concern,” said Sarah Bauerle Danzman, a professor at Indiana University who has advised the State Department on foreign investments.
SpaceX barred Chinese and Hong Kong investors from its initial public offering (IPO) last week, citing “regulatory and compliance risks.” The move follows U.S. allegations that China uses investments in sensitive industries to gain access to advanced technology. The company’s IPO, the largest in history, made Elon Musk the world’s first trillionaire.
Chinese Investor Linked to Space Competitors
One investor identified in the documents is David Su, co-founder of Beijing-based MPCi, which invested $15 million in a SpaceX fund in 2020. MPCi has also backed Chinese space companies sanctioned by the U.S. for ties to the Russian mercenary group Wagner and Iran’s military operations. Su’s firm was highlighted in a 2024 profile as a partner in a state-backed Chinese aerospace initiative.
MPCi stated Su “has not received any nonpublic information of SpaceX” and described him as a Singapore citizen who “resides in Singapore.” However, a 2024 profile noted Su spent “almost 100% of his time in China over the last 20 years.” The company did not respond to requests for further comment.
Qatar’s Involvement in SpaceX Funding
The investor list also includes funds linked to the Qatari royal family. Bracket Capital, an investment firm with offices in Los Angeles, London, and Doha, invested $48 million in SpaceX between 2017 and 2020. A mysterious entity called AM FIG Cayman Limited, based in Doha, invested $10 million in 2020. An email from Tomales Bay Capital’s Iqbaljit Kahlon to SpaceX’s CFO referenced “Yalda” — a co-founder of Bracket — and mentioned a “bail out,” though the context remains unclear.
Bracket did not respond to inquiries. A Tomales Bay Capital spokesperson denied providing “non-public, sensitive information” to investors, stating they were “passive limited partners” with access only to financial details.
Shell Companies and Offshore Investments
The documents highlight the role of offshore entities in SpaceX’s private funding. Many investors used Cayman Islands or other secrecy hubs to route investments, a practice ProPublica previously reported on. One such entity, HAL9001 Partners Fund I, invested $10 million in 2020. Its founder, Roman Sobachevskiy, was fined by the U.S. Treasury for managing a fund tied to a sanctioned Russian oligarch, though no direct link to the SpaceX investment was found.
Tomales Bay Capital, run by Iqbaljit Kahlon, acted as a middleman for investors seeking access to SpaceX. Kahlon, who has worked with the company for over a decade, promised “quarterly updates” and “opportunities to interview with SpaceX’s CFO” in a 2021 pitch to a Chinese investor.
What’s Next for SpaceX and Foreign Investment?
The revelations come as SpaceX’s valuation surges to $2.7 trillion, up from $33.3 billion in 2019. While the company has not commented on the investor list, its IPO restrictions signal growing scrutiny of foreign ownership in critical industries. The U.S. government’s focus on China’s “strategy of using investments for espionage” underscores the broader geopolitical tensions shaping the space sector.
As SpaceX prepares for its public trading debut, the role of foreign investors—and the potential risks they pose—will remain under intense legal and political review.