Crypto exchange Bullish's shares set to open over 75% above IPO price in debut
If the billionaire venture capitalist Peter Thiel-backed crypto exchange starts to trade at the last indicated range of $60 to $65 on the NYSE, it could potentially value the company at more than $9.5 billion.
Bullish raised $1.11 billion in an IPO priced at $37 apiece, valuing it at $5.4 billion and marking another sign of mainstream adoption in a sector that recently topped $4 trillion.
"Bullish came out with an attractive initial valuation, and investors responded by aggressively bidding it up during the pre-IPO process," said Jeff Zell, senior research analyst at IPO Boutique.
A string of regulatory wins under a pro-crypto White House, corporate treasury adoption, and ETF inflows have prompted investors to embrace the once-scorned digital asset class, driving bellwether bitcoin to record highs.
Several crypto firms, including exchange Gemini and asset manager Grayscale, have also confidentially filed to go public.
"Crypto is becoming one of the big pillars of the IPO market, with more deals expected not only via IPO but also through de-SPAC transactions," IPOX CEO Josef Schuster said, referring to take-public blank-check mergers that are frequently used by crypto firms.
Bullish, which acquired cryptocurrency website CoinDesk in 2023, plans to convert a significant portion of the IPO proceeds to stablecoins — a slice of the crypto space that has boomed since U.S. President Donald Trump signed the Genius Act, creating a regulatory regime for the dollar-pegged cryptocurrencies.
INSTITUTIONAL FOCUS
Bullish's debut marks a rare U.S. listing by a crypto exchange, joining larger retail-focused rival Coinbase, which became the first crypto player to be included in the benchmark S&P 500 index in May.
Founded in 2020, Bullish targets institutional clients whose crypto holdings are expected to rise as a new White House order aims to allow alternative investments like crypto in 401(k) retirement plans.
"A pure institutional strategy positions Bullish for more stable, recurring revenue than exchanges reliant on retail volumes, which tend to be cyclical and sentiment-driven," said Michael Hall, co-chief investment officer and founding partner at Nickel Digital Asset Management.
Bullish CEO Tom Farley had previously worked as the president of NYSE.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNA
11 hours ago
- CNA
OpenAI staff looking to sell $6 billion in stock to SoftBank, others, source says
Current and former employees of OpenAI are looking to sell nearly $6 billion worth of the ChatGPT maker's shares to investors including SoftBank Group and Thrive Capital, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Friday. The potential deal would value the company at $500 billion, up from $300 billion currently, underscoring both OpenAI's rapid gains in users and revenue, as well as the intense competition among artificial intelligence firms for talent. SoftBank, Thrive and Dragoneer Investment Group did not immediately respond to requests for comment. All three investment firms are existing OpenAI investors. Bloomberg News, which had earlier reported the development, said discussions are in early stages and the size of the sale could change. The secondary share sale investment adds to SoftBank's role in leading OpenAI's $40 billion primary funding round. Bolstered by its flagship product ChatGPT, OpenAI doubled its revenue in the first seven months of the year, reaching an annualized run rate of $12 billion, and is on track to reach $20 billion by the end of the year, Reuters reported earlier in August.
CNA
11 hours ago
- CNA
Meta plans fourth restructuring of AI efforts in six months, The Information reports
Meta is planning its fourth overhaul of artificial intelligence efforts in six months, The Information reported on Friday, citing three people familiar with the matter. The company is expected to divide its new AI unit, Superintelligence Labs, into four groups: a new "TBD Lab," short for to be determined; a products team including the Meta AI assistant; an infrastructure team; and the Fundamental AI Research (FAIR) lab focused on long-term research, the report said, citing two people. Meta did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Reuters could not independently verify the report. As Silicon Valley's AI contest intensifies, CEO Mark Zuckerberg is going all-in to fast-track work on artificial general intelligence — machines that can outthink humans — and help create new cash flows. Meta recently reorganized the company's AI efforts under Superintelligence Labs, a high-stakes push that followed senior staff departures and a poor reception for Meta's latest open-source Llama 4 model. The social media giant has tapped U.S. bond giant PIMCO and alternative asset manager Blue Owl Capital to spearhead a $29 billion financing for its data center expansion in rural Louisiana, Reuters reported earlier this month. In July, Zuckerberg said Meta would spend hundreds of billions of dollars to build several massive AI data centers. The company raised the bottom end of its annual capital expenditures forecast by $2 billion, to a range of $66 billion to $72 billion last month. Rising costs to build out data center infrastructure and employee compensation costs — as Meta has been poaching researchers with mega salaries — would push the 2026 expense growth rate above the pace in 2025, the company has said.
CNA
12 hours ago
- CNA
Winklevoss twins' Gemini reveals lower revenue and wider loss in US IPO filing
Gemini's revenue fell and losses widened in the first half of 2025, the cryptocurrency exchange said in a U.S. IPO filing, joining a wave of digital-asset firms seeking to tap public markets. Terms of the offering were not disclosed in the filing, made public on Friday. The company reported a net loss of $282.5 million on a total revenue of $68.6 million in the six months ended June 30, compared with a net loss of $41.4 million on a revenue of $74.3 million year earlier. U.S. IPO activity has rebounded in recent months following a slowdown earlier this year caused by uncertainty over trade policy changes, with several new listings drawing strong investor demand. Digital asset companies have also featured prominently in the IPO market in recent months, including blockbuster debuts from stablecoin issuer Circle and cryptocurrency exchange Bullish. Bullish's debut on Wednesday made it the second listed cryptocurrency exchange in the country after Coinbase Global. Gemini will become the third public crypto exchange once it goes public. "The question for investors regarding Gemini revolves around the business mix and moat of trading versus custody, how they differentiate on trust and growth, and what they do that Coinbase can't copy by Tuesday," said Michael Ashley Schulman, partner and CIO at Running Point Capital. Gemini said it will use IPO proceeds for general corporate purposes and to repay all or part of its third-party debt. The exchange also supports stablecoins on its platform, a segment that has drawn attention following last month's signing of the GENIUS Act, a new U.S. law establishing a regulatory framework for stablecoins. Gemini issues the Gemini Dollar (GUSD), a stablecoin pegged 1:1 to the U.S. dollar. The company, which also supports more than 70 cryptocurrencies and operates in over 60 countries, confidentially filed for an IPO in June. Gemini, which was founded in 2014 by billionaire twins Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, plans to list on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol "GEMI." Goldman Sachs and Citigroup are acting as lead bookrunners. The Winklevoss twins rose to prominence after suing Facebook, and its CEO Mark Zuckerberg, alleging he stole their idea for the social network. They settled in 2008 for cash and Facebook stock. REGULATORY BOOST Regulatory clarity under the Trump administration, rising institutional adoption, and increasing ETF inflows have bolstered investor confidence and helped integrate crypto into mainstream finance. In a watershed moment for the industry, Coinbase became the first blockchain-focused company to join the S&P 500 earlier this year. Block, which facilitates bitcoin purchases, joined the index in July. The shift marks a turnaround for an industry that spent more than a decade under heavy regulatory scrutiny worldwide. "We've seen a shift from speculation to sustainability. Institutional investors are looking for proof points - real clients, regulated products, and long-term market alignment. This is how the sector matures, and it will likely set the stage for other crypto firms keen to list their shares," said Nick Jones, founder of crypto firm Zumo.
