The original version of this article first appeared in The Business Times. When SpaceX listed on the Nasdaq this month, individual investors were reported to have submitted more than US$100 billion in orders for a slice of the largest IPO in history. Demand from retail investors ran so far ahead that most of them likely came away with a fraction of what they asked for, or nothing at all. The scenes were familiar—the media's breathless coverage, the desire to own a piece of the future, and the fear of missing out were an irresistible combination. I want to be careful here because this is not a column about whether SpaceX is a good company. The analysts are still arguing over that one, and I suspect a clean answer is a long way off. Only time will tell. The more revealing question—the one that actually has a useful answer—is what this...