SpaceX Deal Lines Up $3 Billion in Tax Savings for EchoStar CEO

A splashy deal with SpaceX has helped send shares of telecommunications company EchoStar Corp. soaring more than 375% since early August, boosting the net worth of co-founder Charlie Ergen to $20.1 billion.

But the surge is also having a subtler, second-order effect on the former professional poker player’s fortune: Ergen stands to gain through his use of a niche estate-planning tool that may allow him to pass along more than $7.5 billion in stock to his heirs tax-free.

After a years-long slump, EchoStar — the operator of Boost Mobile and satellite TV provider Dish — got a jolt last year ...