SpaceX Default Insurance Cost Hits Record 286.56 bps as Tech Selloff Deepens After US Election

The cost to protect SpaceX debt against default surged to a fresh record on November 5, with the company's five-year credit default swaps widening 24.5 basis points to 286.56, according to Markit data. The move extended a sharp run-up in credit risk that market participants linked to US election results raising political concerns around Elon Musk's companies, as well as a broader selloff led by chipmakers. ICE Data Services separately quoted the five-year CDS as wide as 284.3 basis points on the day, broadly consistent with the Markit peak.

The record comes against a backdrop of growing stress in private credit markets more broadly. Rating firm KBRA reported on the same day that private credit defaults recorded their largest quarterly jump on record, a development that has drawn attention from regulators and investors watching the asset class for signs of deterioration after years of rapid growth.

Together, the two data points reflect rising anxiety across credit markets in the wake of the election, with SpaceX's CDS level now far above the roughly 110 basis points where it traded at the start of 2026 and well above the prior record of around 226 basis points reached earlier in the year.