Sickle Slashes at Index Fund Investors: S&P Dow Jones Indicates SpaceX Eligible for Fast Inclusion in Some Indexes

June 10. Right as moves that rattled index fund investors and U.S. retirement savers unfolded, S&P Dow Jones Indices just announced SpaceX qualifies for fast-track inclusion in some of its indices. That said, S&P is already aligning with competitors on this trend. Beyond S&P itself, other independent index providers have tweaked rules to let mega-IPOs like SpaceX land in their indices quickly. FTSE Russell rolled out a new fast-track rule recently: eligible mega-cap firms (SpaceX being a key example) can join its Russell 1000, 2000, 3000 and FTSE Global Equity Index Series just 5 trading days after going public, with eligibility mostly hinging on market cap. Nasdaq followed suit too, especially for the Nasdaq 100, with new fast-entry rules that let mega-IPOs like SpaceX get added roughly 15 trading days post-listing. This forces ETFs and funds tracking the Nasdaq 100 to snap up large blocks of shares in a tight window. More recently, S&P Dow Jones Indices made small rule tweaks to some of its broad-market indices, focused on loosening public float requirements. The changes apply to indices like the S&P Total Market Index and Dow Jones U.S. Total Stock Market Index. Under the new rules, newly listed firms with low public float but massive market cap—like SpaceX—can get added to these indices quickly, skipping the S&P 500’s strict 12-month seasoning period and profitability hurdles. On a brighter note, S&P is keeping its existing eligibility rules for key benchmark indices like the S&P 500, rejecting proposals to speed up adding mega-cap firms like SpaceX to this core benchmark post-listing. The 12-month "seasoning period" for new listings won’t be shortened, and there’s no exemption from current profitability or public float rules based on company size. That means SpaceX will have to wait at least a year after going public to earn a spot in the S&P 500.