Anduril Industries designs and manufactures autonomous defense systems — from lattice-networked surveillance towers to the Roadrunner interceptor drone. In a private market marketplace, the company has scaled rapidly on the back of multi-year government contracts, and its most recent reported valuation placed it above $28 billion. If you're still building foundational context on how pre-IPO investing and defense-sector secondary markets function, review the complete guide to pre-IPO investing before evaluating Anduril-specific deal structures and liquidity dynamics. For accredited investors watching the private markets, it is one of the few defense-native technology companies with a liquid secondary market.
That liquidity is relative, though. Before placing an indication on any Anduril-linked listing, buyers should understand four things: how the company's revenue profile affects valuation methodology, what transfer restrictions typically look like in defense-sector cap tables, how ROFR works in practice for this issuer, and what drives supply and demand cycles on the secondary market right now.
Revenue model and what it means for secondary marks
Most software unicorns are valued on a revenue multiple — typically ARR (annual recurring revenue) or NTM (next twelve months) revenue. Anduril's business is structurally different. A significant portion of its revenue comes from government contracts that have fixed terms, milestone-based payments, and renewal uncertainty tied to federal budget cycles. This makes pure revenue-multiple analysis less reliable than it is for a SaaS company.
Secondary marks — the per-share prices implied by secondary trades — tend to anchor to the most recent primary round valuation and then adjust based on macro signals: defense budget headlines, contract announcements, competitive program wins or losses, and broader sentiment toward dual-use technology. When Congress signals increased procurement spending, secondary marks for defense-focused issuers often move before any operating metrics change.
The 409A baseline and its limits
Like all private companies, Anduril maintains a 409A valuation for the purpose of setting option strike prices. That number is typically a discount to the preferred share price implied by the most recent primary round. On the secondary market, shares can trade at a premium or discount to the 409A, depending on investor demand and the specific vehicle structure. Buyers should always ask what valuation a secondary listing is anchored to — and whether the price reflects preferred share economics or common stock.
Transfer restrictions and ROFR in practice
Defense sector companies tend to have more conservative transfer restriction language than consumer tech names. There are two reasons. First, government customers and contract counterparties sometimes scrutinize cap table changes for national security or contractor eligibility reasons. Second, defense founders and early institutional investors have historically been reluctant to allow broad secondary market activity that might complicate a future primary raise or pre-IPO process.
In practice, this means buyers should expect that Anduril's right of first refusal (ROFR) is actively exercised and that the company's consent rights — which are separate from ROFR — may require more time to clear than on a comparable software issuer. ROFR gives the company (and sometimes existing investors) the right to purchase shares at the same price a secondary buyer has agreed to pay, before that buyer can close. If the company exercises ROFR, the buyer's indication falls through.
Platforms that process ROFR in parallel with execution — rather than sequentially — reduce the risk that a buyer holds capital in limbo during a multi-week consent process. At Limen Markets, ROFR clearance is initiated at the time of indication, not after closing, which shortens the effective settlement window. For a company like Anduril where consent processes can run longer than consumer tech names, this sequencing matters.
Who is selling, and why it matters for buyers
Secondary supply in defense tech names like Anduril generally comes from three sources: early employees approaching the end of a vesting cliff, angel and seed investors seeking portfolio liquidity after a long hold, and SPV investors who entered in earlier rounds and are managing concentration or redemption pressure.
Understanding the seller type helps buyers assess the quality of the listing. An early employee selling a small lot at a modest discount to the last primary round is a very different signal than a structured SPV unwinding a large block under time pressure. The former is routine liquidity-seeking behavior; the latter can sometimes reflect information asymmetry or fund-level dynamics unrelated to the company's underlying prospects.
Buyers should ask their platform about the seller type before placing an indication — not because one type is categorically better, but because understanding the motivation helps you interpret the price and the timeline.
Foreign ownership and national security considerations
Anduril is a defense contractor. Non-U.S. persons and entities — including foreign nationals and entities with significant foreign ownership — should be aware that holding equity in a company with active government contracts may trigger scrutiny under CFIUS (Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States). This is not a bar to investment for most accredited investors, but it is a variable worth discussing with counsel before closing.
Most secondary platforms, including Limen Markets, require standard accredited investor verification. However, that process does not substitute for an independent legal assessment if you have any foreign nexus. Consider this a general orientation, not legal advice.
The demand picture today
As of May 2026, secondary interest in defense tech broadly — and Anduril specifically — remains elevated relative to the 2022–2023 period. Increased NATO procurement commitments, continued growth in domestic defense budgets, and Anduril's contract momentum have kept institutional demand strong. At the same time, the IPO market for defense tech names has been slower to open than some investors anticipated, which means secondary markets remain the primary liquidity mechanism for holders.
This supply-demand dynamic has kept secondary marks relatively close to primary round implied valuations, with less of the steep discount that buyers might find in slower-moving software names. Buyers looking for a larger margin of safety should monitor the listing feed closely — price dislocations do occur, usually around macro volatility events or periods of elevated ROFR exercise, when sellers become more price-flexible. These conditions are best read against the broader pre-IPO market outlook, which shapes pricing and liquidity across secondary names.
How to proceed
If Anduril fits your portfolio thesis — exposure to autonomous defense systems and the continued digitization of military infrastructure — the secondary market is the only route to a position before a public offering. The steps are: verify accredited investor status, review the specific vehicle structure on any listing (direct transfer versus SPV), confirm ROFR and consent timelines with your platform, and understand your tax basis based on the price and structure you are entering.
Browse the Anduril secondary market for current listings and live pricing on the Limen Markets marketplace. If you want to understand how defense tech secondary dynamics compare to software names across the broader platform, our defense tech secondaries guide covers the category in more depth.