Crypto exchange Bullish shares rocket more than 150% in New York debut
Founded in 2020, Bullish was valued at nearly $13.2bn in NYSE debut
Bullish chair Brendan Blumer and CFO David Bonanno look at the price of the stock during the company’s IPO at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, the US, August 13 2025. Picture: BRENDAN MCDERMID/ REUTERS
Bengaluru/New York — Cryptocurrency exchange operator Bullish was valued at about $13.16bn after its shares surged more than 150% in their New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) debut on Wednesday, underscoring investor confidence in the sector and lifting prospects for future US listings by other digital asset firms.
The stock opened at $90 and was trading over 150% its IPO price of $37 in afternoon trading. It went as high as $118, before paring gains slightly to trade at $92.60.
The parent of crypto news website CoinDesk raised $1.11bn in its IPO, valuing the company at $5.4bn — another sign of mainstream adoption in a market 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.
Exchange operator Gemini and asset manager Grayscale are also among the crypto firms that have confidentially filed to go public.
“We’ve gone public today, and there’s a slew of others that are going to follow us, and I think that is net beneficial, because it gives people more options in terms of how they access this asset class,” Bullish president Chris Tyrer told Reuters in an interview.
Bullish is close to concluding a two-year process to obtain a virtual currency licence known as a “BitLicense” in New York, which would allow the company to operate in the state, Tyrer said.
The BitLicense requires companies to comply with requirements related to know-your-customer, anti-money laundering and capital.
Peter Thiel-backed Bullish plans to convert a significant portion of the IPO proceeds to stablecoins — a slice of the crypto space that has boomed since US President Donald Trump signed the Genius Act, creating a regulatory regime for the dollar-pegged cryptocurrencies.
Bullish’s debut marks a rare US 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 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 was previously the president of NYSE.
“For a sector still overcoming reputational headwinds, that kind of leadership experience can be a differentiator in securing institutional mandates,” Hall said.
