The crypto world is no stranger to rapid surges and dramatic shifts, but recently, an intriguing trend has emerged not just in tokens but also in the stock market. While many crypto enthusiasts obsess over the latest token listings and moonshots, some of the most explosive growth is unfolding on traditional stock exchanges. Several crypto companies, notably crypto exchanges, are going public, causing their stock prices to soar and drawing fresh investor attention to regulated crypto infrastructure plays. In particular, the stunning debut of Bullish, a US-based institutional crypto exchange, has sparked the question: is the crypto stock boom truly upon us?
Bullish’s Meteoric IPO Debut
On August 13, 2025, Bullish made headlines by kicking down the IPO door with a massive first-day surge. Starting with a $37 price before trading began, Bullish’s stock rocketed to an opening price near $90 and peaked at around $118 during the session, delivering a jaw-dropping 218% intraday surge and closing at a still-impressive near 90% gain on day one.
Bullish, unlike many retail-focused crypto exchanges, caters mainly to institutional clients, offering spot, futures, and other trading services designed as “institutional rails” for crypto markets. It's led by former New York Stock Exchange President Tom Farley and backed by notable investors like PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel. Moreover, Bullish owns Coindesk, a leading crypto news outlet, further cementing its weight in the crypto ecosystem.
Beyond the price spike, Bullish raised $1.1 billion prior to IPO by selling 30 million shares. At the peak of the first trading day, Bullish’s valuation briefly touched $13 billion—a clear sign that investors are hungry for regulated and institution-ready crypto platforms. In a noteworthy and symbolic move, Bullish settled its entire IPO proceeds in stablecoins—a first of such scale for a US offering—highlighting how crypto’s backend infrastructure is grabbing center stage.
Institutional Demand Driving the Cycle
What sets Bullish apart is its strong institutional focus. Unlike previous crypto market cycles where retail enthusiasm and hype dominated, the current environment appears fueled more by institutional demand, corporate treasuries, and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). This shift helps explain why a company like Bullish, centered on compliance, market making, and connectivity rather than “tap to buy” crypto apps, drew such a robust market reaction.
That said, Bullish also included a surprisingly large retail allocation—roughly 20%—allowing individual investors a sizable but controlled share ahead of trading. This mixed approach may be signaling an evolving market where both retail and institutions want exposure, but with a strong regulatory focus.
The Gemini Challenge and Market Realities
Buoyed by Bullish’s blockbuster debut, several other crypto exchanges are racing to join the public markets. Gemini, founded by the Winklevoss twins, confidentially filed for an IPO just days after Bullish’s success. However, Gemini’s financials revealed some red flags: a $280 million loss in the first half of 2025 on revenues of $68 million, compared to a $41 million loss and $74 million revenue in the same period the previous year. These worsening earnings, coupled with higher marketing expenses and decreasing fee averages, underscore the challenge Gemini faces in convincing investors despite a compliance-first US-based strategy.
Gemini plans to use IPO proceeds for general corporate purposes and debt reduction, aided by a $675 million debt-to-equity conversion with a discount—a move that improves balance sheets but worsens headline losses temporarily. Given these factors, Gemini’s IPO will serve as a key barometer for investor appetite amid growing crypto IPO enthusiasm.
A Historic Perspective on Crypto IPOs
Looking at history offers a useful backdrop. Coinbase’s April 2021 direct listing coincided with Bitcoin’s all-time highs near $65,000 to $69,000, marking a peak that some regard as a cycle top signal. At that time, retail hype was palpable, evidenced by Coinbase’s app soaring to number one in US app store rankings. Retail interest helped propel the crypto bull market then.
But 2025’s cycle appears fundamentally different. Retail waves haven’t dominated. Instead, institutional flows from ETFs and corporate treasuries drive demand. Many new crypto users come through integrated platforms like Robinhood, which offer crypto alongside stocks and plans to launch its own blockchain. As such, the retail-driven “app hype” might no longer be the prime market momentum driver. This changes where investors might look for early warning signals of market tops in 2025 and beyond.
The Binance Factor: Private but Influential
A wildcard in the crypto IPO boom narrative is Binance, the largest and most influential crypto exchange globally, which remains private. Throughout 2024 and into 2025, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) emphasized no immediate need for a public listing, citing profitability and adequate funding. But he stopped short of ruling out a future IPO entirely.
In the meantime, many investors have turned to Binance’s native token, BNB, as a proxy for Binance exposure. BNB recently hit an all-time high of $900, reflecting investor appetite for Binance’s ecosystem despite no direct public equity available. It’s important to note BNB is not equity; its value derives from utility, including fee discounts and launchpad access, but no direct claim on Binance profits.
Other exchanges preparing for IPOs have recognized the need to sever direct profit ties to their tokens to avoid “equity leakage.” For example, OKX shifted OKB, its token, to become purely a gas token with capped supply and algorithmic burns, aiming to present a cleaner corporate structure pre-IPO.
What Lies Ahead for Crypto Stocks?
The IPO pipeline is heating up. Kraken is reportedly planning to go public as early as 2026, seeking up to $1 billion in debt pre-IPO and $500 million in private funding at a $15 billion valuation. OKX has reopened US operations and is considering an IPO, implying more public listings may be forthcoming. Custodian BitGo and asset manager Grayscale have also confidentially filed for IPOs, indicating broader crypto sector interest.
Despite the excitement, investors should watch carefully for signs of cooling demand. Large first-day price “pops” above typical 15–20% IPO gains demonstrate enthusiasm, but if those gains shrink, it could signal waning appetite. More importantly, IPO valuations should be considered alongside ETF flows and corporate treasury activity to gauge underlying sector health.
The current environment is undeniably hot, fueled by institutional participation and regulatory clarity. However, the market remains exposed to usual forces of greed and fear, and the maturity of this cycle, in contrast to past ones, means volatility and froth might manifest differently.
Conclusion
The explosive 218% surge of Bullish’s IPO debut marks a significant moment in crypto’s evolution—one where institutional players and regulated infrastructure firms dominate the spotlight. While this may indeed signal a crypto stock boom on the horizon, not all forthcoming IPOs will share Bullish’s fortune, as Gemini’s sobering financials suggest.
The sector’s growth is underpinned by an institutional wave rather than retail hype, and the private status of Binance leaves a critical gap in public equity options. Nonetheless, crypto stocks are capturing investor attention amid a generally favorable regulatory and market environment.
For investors, staying informed about IPO fundamentals, institutional flows, tokenomics adjustments, and broader market trends will be key in navigating this burgeoning chapter of crypto finance. The crypto stock boom may well be here—but it requires thoughtful participation rather than following hype alone.
By Wolfy Wealth - Empowering crypto investors since 2016
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Disclosure: Authors may be crypto investors mentioned in this newsletter. Wolfy Wealth Crypto newsletter, does not represent an offer to trade securities or other financial instruments. Our analyses, information and investment strategies are for informational purposes only, in order to spread knowledge about the crypto market. Any investments in variable income may cause partial or total loss of the capital used. Therefore, the recipient of this newsletter should always develop their own analyses and investment strategies. In addition, any investment decisions should be based on the investor's risk profile.
