F2Pool Founder Wang Chun Books SpaceX Seat on Mars Flyby

Crypto mining pool leader funds crewed interplanetary mission

Wang Chun, founder of F2Pool, has purchased a seat on SpaceX’s first crewed flyby mission to Mars, alongside a separate booking on a weeklong lunar flight. The announcement marks a rare instance of a crypto industry figure directly funding deep-space exploration through private channels.

F2Pool, founded in 2013, operates as one of the first Bitcoin mining pools to emerge from China and currently commands 11.85% of global Bitcoin mining market share, ranking third largest among active pools. Wang is a Chinese-born citizen of Malta.

SpaceX’s Mars mission is structured as a two-year journey that will fly past the Moon, continue to Mars, and return to Earth. The lunar flight Wang secured is scheduled to launch before the interplanetary mission departs. The source does not specify exact launch dates for either mission.

Wang’s rationale for funding the seat reflects a conviction about the geopolitics of space exploration. “I have no confidence that Mars will still happen within our lifetime. And I think I should do something about that,” Wang said. He elaborated: “I hope that by purchasing a flyby mission to Mars, SpaceX will have another reason not to forget about Mars.”

Wang’s reasoning distinguishes between lunar and Martian ambitions. Governments will likely return humans to the Moon due to US-China competition, he believes, but Mars requires private capital to remain a viable objective. SpaceX’s broader vision for Mars includes building a self-sustaining city estimated to require more than 1 million people and millions of tons of cargo.

This is not Wang’s first crewed spaceflight. In April 2025, he bankrolled and commanded Fram2, a SpaceX mission that orbited Earth’s poles with a crew of four. On May 23, 2026, Wang posted on X about Fram2 training and discussions around Phobos tethering. Fram2 crew conducted experiments including taking an X-ray in space and growing mushrooms.

Wang’s vision extends beyond personal experience. “I hope this mission can show the public that Mars is not just a point of light in a telescope. It is a real place, and humans can fly there and come back alive and come back healthy,” he said.

SpaceX’s cargo flights supporting Mars research and exploration are not expected to launch before 2028, according to the source.

The source does not specify the purchase price of Wang’s Mars seat, when he acquired it, or the identities of other crew members on the flyby mission.