When Chime hit the public markets at $27 and then rocketed to $39 on its first day of trading, I couldn't help but notice the familiar pattern playing out again. That 44% pop represented exactly the kind of instant wealth creation that makes average investors feel like they're standing outside a party they weren't invited to.
And let's be honest—who doesn't fantasize about getting in on the ground floor of the next big thing?
But here's what I keep hearing from readers: Is there any realistic way for regular folks to grab these IPO shares at offering prices? Or are we forever doomed to watch from the sidelines while connected insiders make all the money?
The answer isn't pretty. But it's one worth understanding.
The Country Club of Initial Public Offerings
Look, the traditional IPO process remains about as democratic as a private yacht club with a seven-figure membership fee. I've covered Wall Street for years, and this part hasn't changed much.
Investment banks (your Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley types) still hand out the majority of IPO allocations to their institutional buddies—those massive hedge funds and pension managers who generate millions in trading commissions. It's finance's oldest quid pro quo arrangement.
The typical retail investor—that's you and me—doesn't even register on their radar during these discussions. I've sat in on enough background briefings to know how these conversations go.
"But wait," you might say, "I thought fintech was democratizing everything!" Well... sort of.
Your Potential Tickets to the IPO Party
There are indeed several pathways for regular investors to potentially—and I stress potentially—get IPO shares at the original offering price:
Brokerage IPO programs: Fidelity, Schwab, and others sometimes offer IPO access. The catch? (There's always a catch, isn't there?) You typically need hefty account balances. I checked with several brokerages last month, and we're talking $100,000 to $500,000 minimums in many cases. That's accessibility for the merely wealthy rather than the ultra-wealthy. Progress, I guess?
Direct listings and SPACs: Companies like Spotify pioneered the modern direct listing, theoretically creating a more level playing field. Having tracked several of these offerings, I can tell you the results for retail investors have been... mixed at best.
Fintech platforms: This is where things get a bit more interesting. Robinhood and SoFi have been working to crack open the IPO door for smaller investors. SoFi, for instance, only requires $3,000 in your account. That's actually somewhat accessible.
Directed share programs: Sometimes called "friends and family" shares. Some companies—Airbnb did this for hosts—set aside a small allocation for customers or stakeholders. If you're a loyal customer of a company going public, it might be worth asking if they're doing this.
Here's the rub, though—even with these options, allocations are typically tiny. During the Reddit IPO earlier this year, I spoke with dozens of retail investors who tried to get shares. Most requested 100-200 shares and received... five. Or zero.
It's like showing up at a restaurant that advertised a special, only to be told they're "all out" before the doors even opened.
The Weird Economics of the First-Day Pop
The fascinating paradox in all this—and something I've observed across hundreds of IPOs—is that those dramatic first-day pops actually represent a colossal failure of the process.
When Chime jumps 44% on day one, it means the company essentially left millions on the table by pricing too low. The company's founders and early investors actually got shortchanged.
(This is why, by the way, investment bankers have to perform a delicate balancing act. Price too high and the stock might drop, making everyone look bad. Price too low and the company feels cheated.)
This creates a strange situation where the IPOs you're most likely to get access to as a retail investor are often the duds—the ones without that explosive first-day performance. The hottest deals? Still largely reserved for the big players.
The Day-After Strategy
Many retail folks I've interviewed over the years opt for what I call the "next best thing" approach: buying immediately after public trading begins.
No special access required—just a standard brokerage account and quick reflexes.
The downside? You're paying whatever the market demands after that initial surge. By the time most retail investors could click "buy" on Chime, they were paying $39, not $27.
This turns investing into a game of... well, not musical chairs exactly. More like hot potato. Will you find someone willing to pay $45 before enthusiasm cools?
Sometimes you can. I've seen it work. Often you can't.
Taking the Longer View
Something I've noticed after covering public offerings for more than a decade: that opening day pop—as exciting as it is—might actually be the least important part of a company's stock market story.
Facebook (now Meta) dropped below its IPO price shortly after going public. Amazon took years to recover from the dot-com crash. Meanwhile, plenty of companies that soared 50%+ on day one came crashing back to earth within months.
The real question isn't whether you can snag Chime at $27, but whether Chime at $39 (or whatever price it settles at) represents good value over years, not hours.
Your Practical Game Plan
If you're still determined to play the IPO game (and I get it, the allure is strong), here's what I recommend based on conversations with dozens of successful retail investors:
- Maintain decent-sized accounts at major brokerages and apply for their IPO programs
- Consider platforms like SoFi that have more accessible IPO programs
- Adjust your expectations—getting 5-10 shares of a hot IPO is actually a win
- Most importantly: evaluate whether the post-pop price still makes sense for a long-term investment
Or perhaps—and this is what I tell friends who ask me about IPOs at dinner parties—recognize that missing the first day of a stock's potential decades-long journey isn't actually that consequential in a well-built portfolio.
After all, the real wealth in stock investing has rarely come from first-day flips, but from finding solid businesses and holding them through their growth phases.
But yeah... that's not nearly as exciting as watching a stock jump 44% while scrolling through your phone during your morning coffee break.
