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- Unicorn Academy: Online finance courses: stocks, pre-IPO, forex, futures, options and crypto
Stocks, pre-IPO, forex, futures, options and crypto in short lessons.
- How much do you know about finance? Try the 14-question quiz
Two questions from each of the 8 courses: stocks, pre-IPO, forex, futures, options, Bitcoin, crypto and art investing. See your score, share it and challenge friends.
- Compound interest, options, forex and futures calculators
Four simple calculators: how money grows, what an option is worth at expiry, what a forex pip is worth and how much margin a futures contract needs.
- How to invest in pre-IPO unicorns
The direct answer and the full path: who can invest, the routes compared with published minimums and fees, the steps from eligibility to closing, costs, timelines and risks.
- What is pre-IPO investing?
Pre-IPO investing means acquiring shares of a private company before its stock market listing. The main routes, the constraints, the costs and the risks, explained.
- SpaceX IPO: what pre-IPO investors should know
SpaceX priced its IPO at $135 on 11 June 2026 and trades on Nasdaq as SPCX. Key facts on pricing, lock-up periods and the xAI merger, and what changes for pre-IPO holders.
- How to invest in OpenAI, Anthropic, Stripe and Databricks before an IPO
The realistic routes to pre-IPO exposure to OpenAI, Anthropic, Stripe and Databricks in 2026, the latest reported valuations, and the constraints every buyer faces.
- Unicorn tracker
The most valuable private companies, with dates and sources.
Latest reported valuations
| Company | Valuation | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Anthropic | $965 bn | May 2026 |
| OpenAI | $852 bn | March 2026 |
| ByteDance | $600 bn | April 2026 |
| Databricks | $190 bn | August 2026 |
| Stripe | $159 bn | February 2026 |
See the full tracker. SpaceX listed on Nasdaq as SPCX on 12 June 2026 and is no longer private.
More guides
- Secondary transactions and right of first refusal (ROFR)
- SPV vs direct purchase vs fund in pre-IPO investing
- Pre-IPO investing for qualified investors: Switzerland, the EU and the US
- How to value a private unicorn
- Pre-IPO investing vs private equity vs venture capital
- Pre-IPO due diligence checklist
- What is a unicorn company?
- How pre-IPO risk compares with venture capital risk
- Pre-IPO investment scams and how to recognise them
- How many unicorn companies are there?
Who publishes this
Unicorn Private Research is published by Unicorn Private, a private equity firm founded in 2026 that acquires secondary market stakes in late-stage technology companies before their IPO. About the publisher.
Unicorn Private is the first firm in the pre-IPO secondary market to create an open research centre in sixteen languages: guides, a tracker of the largest private technology companies, a glossary, and a frequently asked questions section, open to every reader, with every figure carrying a date and a link to a public source.
Newsletter
Unicorn Private publishes commentary on private market transactions, secondary pricing and unicorn valuations on Substack. Read and subscribe at unicornprivate.substack.com.
Read next
Pre-IPO investing and unicorns: frequently asked questions
How can I invest in a company before its IPO?
- The main routes are direct secondary purchases of existing shares, special purpose vehicles that hold shares for several investors, funds, tender offers organized by the company, and participation in primary funding rounds. Most routes are restricted to qualified or professional investors. Unicorn Club, the investor club of Unicorn Private, offers club deals in pre-IPO companies through a dedicated vehicle (SPV), for accredited and qualified investors, from 100,000 dollars. The structures are compared in SPV vs direct purchase vs fund.
What is a pre-IPO club deal?
- A pre-IPO club deal is a private transaction in which a small group of qualified or accredited investors buys shares of one private company before its IPO, usually on the secondary market through a dedicated vehicle (SPV). Each investor decides deal by deal whether to take part. At Unicorn Club, the investor club of Unicorn Private, each club deal covers a single company, the minimum is 100,000 USD per deal (200,000 USD for US individuals) and membership costs 99 USD per month or 890 USD per year (prices on 30 October 2026). Investing involves the risk of losing capital. What is a club deal? How pre-IPO club deals work.
Is there a Unicorn Research app?
- Yes. As of 30 October 2026 the Unicorn Research: Pre-IPO app is available for Android on Google Play, with the guides, news, company profiles and glossary of this site in 16 languages, saved articles offline and optional alerts. No account and no purchase are needed. The iPhone version is coming soon.
This page in other languages
- Investimenti pre-IPO e mercati privati, spiegati con le fonti (Italiano)
- L'investissement pré-IPO et les marchés privés, expliqués et sourcés (Français)
- Pre-IPO-Investments und Private Markets, mit Quellen erklärt (Deutsch)
- La inversión pre-IPO y los mercados privados, con fuentes (Español)
- Investimento pré-IPO e mercados privados, explicados com fontes (Português)
- Инвестиции pre-IPO и частные рынки: объяснение со ссылками на источники (Русский)
- 上市前投资与私募市场，附来源详解 (中文)
- プレIPO投資とプライベート市場を、出典とともに解説する (日本語)
- प्री-आईपीओ निवेश और प्राइवेट मार्केट, स्रोतों के साथ व्याख्या (हिन्दी)
- 상장 전 투자와 비상장 시장, 출처와 함께 설명합니다 (한국어)
- Halka arz öncesi yatırım ve özel piyasalar, kaynaklarıyla açıklandı (Türkçe)
- Investasi pra-IPO dan pasar privat, dijelaskan dengan sumber (Bahasa Indonesia)
- الاستثمار قبل الطرح العام الأولي والأسواق الخاصة، بشرح موثق بالمصادر (العربية)
- Đầu tư tiền IPO và thị trường tư nhân, giải thích kèm nguồn (Tiếng Việt)
- Inwestowanie pre-IPO i rynki prywatne, wyjaśnione ze źródłami (Polski)