Crypto IPOs: The Circus of Financial Fantasies Unfolds! đŸŽȘ💰

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Key takeaways:

  • Ah, the grand spectacle of Circle’s IPO! CRCL has soared like a kite in a storm, up nearly 290%, igniting a frenzy among investors who have suddenly remembered they have wallets! 💾

  • With Gemini and Bullish filing their IPOs, it seems the crypto carnival is just getting started. More crypto firms are polishing their public personas, ready to strut their stuff! 🎉

  • Not every listing will be a golden goose, but the crypto presence in the stock market is like a cat in a room full of rocking chairs—definitely a big deal! đŸ±

Since the dawn of 2025, IPOs from crypto companies have been stacking up like pancakes at a Sunday brunch. In May, the Israeli exchange eToro and the Delaware-based Galaxy Digital made their grand entrance onto Nasdaq. And then, like a magician pulling a rabbit from a hat, Circle appeared: the USDC issuer’s IPO on June 5 was a spectacle that marked the beginning of a full-blown crypto IPO season. With CRCL now trading almost 290% above its IPO price, investors didn’t just show up—they came in like a stampede! 🐮

The message is as clear as a bell: public markets are ravenous for crypto-native plays with real revenue, compliance that doesn’t make regulators faint, and infrastructure that can actually hold up! It’s a vote of confidence—and a green light for other crypto firms eyeing the public route, like a kid in a candy store! 🍭

Crypto’s IPO window is flung wide open. The appetite is there, and the opportunities are as plentiful as pigeons in a park! đŸ•Šïž

New crypto IPO filings: Gemini and Bullish

It hasn’t even been a week since Circle’s NYSE debut, and already two more NYC-based crypto companies are stepping up to the IPO plate, like eager contestants in a pie-eating contest! đŸ„§

On June 6, Gemini, the crypto exchange founded by the Winklevoss twins (yes, those twins), announced that it had confidentially filed a draft registration statement (Form S-1) with the SEC. The details are as mysterious as a magician’s trick—share count and pricing remain undisclosed! đŸŽ©

Then, on June 11, crypto exchange Bullish followed suit. According to the Financial Times, the Peter Thiel-backed exchange also submitted its own confidential IPO paperwork to the SEC. Bullish had previously attempted to go public via SPAC in 2021, but that plan collapsed faster than a house of cards in a windstorm! đŸŒȘ

Now, the timing seems perfect: the US is advancing toward regulatory clarity on crypto assets, institutional capital has normalized crypto exposure, and global macroeconomic uncertainty is pushing investors toward diversification. The probability of more IPO announcements is higher than a kite on a windy day! 🎈

Who’s next in the crypto IPO line?

The strongest speculation surrounds Kraken, a major US exchange. According to Bloomberg, Kraken is reportedly preparing to go public, possibly in early 2026. Its last priced funding round dates back to 2019, when it raised $13.5 million at a $4 billion valuation. Quite the treasure chest, wouldn’t you say? đŸŽâ€â˜ ïž

Another candidate is BitGo, a regulated US-based custodian. In February, reports surfaced that BitGo was targeting an IPO “as early as this year.” The company’s last valuation, dated August 2023, stood at $1.75 billion. Not too shabby! 💎

Beyond those, several other crypto companies could also be considered potential IPO candidates:

  • Consensys, a US-based developer of MetaMask and other Ethereum tooling. Valued at around $7 billion, the company is in a strong position to pursue an IPO. Talk about a golden ticket! đŸŽŸïž

  • Ledger, the French hardware wallet maker. With a valuation of $1.4 billion in 2023 and strong global brand recognition, it could go public on Euronext or a US exchange. Ooh la la! đŸ‡«đŸ‡·

  • Fireblocks, the institutional custody infrastructure firm based in New York, was valued at $8 billion after the 2022 Series E funding round. Since then, the company has been scaling operations, marked by a series of C-suite hires in 2023 and 2024. They’re on fire! đŸ”„

  • Chainalysis, another New York-based blockchain analytics firm known for serving law enforcement and financial institutions, was valued at $8.6 billion in 2022. The company has also seen important leadership changes since December 2024, notably hiring its first chief financial officer. A real power move! đŸ’Œ

Will the next round of crypto IPOs match Circle’s success?

Circle has set the bar higher than a cat on a hot tin roof. CRCL’s post-IPO performance was explosive—up over 240% within days—and helped set the tone for the current crypto IPO wave. However, there’s a structural difference between Circle and other crypto firms that consider going public. Circle’s core product is essentially a dollar with more blockchain-related capacities. Its business model—earning interest on reserves backing USDC—is as familiar to traditional finance as grandma’s apple pie! đŸ„§

The same cannot be said for crypto exchanges, blockchain infrastructure firms, or data analytics platforms. These businesses depend more directly on the long-term development of Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Web3 ecosystems. That’s a different bet, requiring investors to engage more deeply with crypto’s complexities. The eToro (ETOR) and Galaxy Digital (GLXY) listings in May were less successful than Circle’s, registering only a 43-46% gain on the first trading day. A bit of a letdown, wouldn’t you agree? 😅

Still, even if upcoming IPOs don’t match Circle’s returns, their symbolic value is enormous. Each listing marks a tightening link between the crypto and traditional finance worlds, like a handshake between old friends! đŸ€

Crypto is becoming an integral part of public markets. Some traditionally non-crypto firms have reinvented themselves—like MicroStrategy (MSTR), Riot Platforms (RIOT), and Marathon (MARA)—while crypto-native companies are increasingly going public. With MSTR joining the Nasdaq 100 in December 2024 and Coinbase’s COIN entering the S&P 500 in May 2025, both of the world’s top equity indexes now reflect exposure to the crypto industry. Quite the transformation! 🌍

What was once dismissed as a volatile fringe is now producing companies that are IPO-ready—and in some cases, outperforming expectations. Who would have thought? đŸ€”

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2025-06-13 21:56