Bullish (BLSH) surged in its Nasdaq debut on Wednesday, capping its first trading day with an 83.8% gain from its initial public offering price and lifting the cryptocurrency exchange operator's market capitalization above $10 billion, according to Reuters. Shares closed at $68, then climbed another 11.2% in after-hours trading.
The Cayman Islands-based company, which operates the Bullish Exchange and owns the crypto news outlet CoinDesk, had priced its IPO at $37 per share-above earlier expectations of $32 to $33-raising $1.1 billion through the sale of 30 million shares. The offering followed a string of high-profile IPOs in 2025, including Circle Internet Group and Figma.
Trading was volatile from the start. Shares opened at $90 and soared to $118 within minutes-more than 215% above the IPO price-before retreating. The stock was halted twice for volatility. By Thursday premarket, it was trading at $78, still more than double the IPO price but about 16% below Wednesday's opening level.
The strong debut drew immediate institutional interest. Cathie Wood's ARK Invest disclosed it had purchased 2.53 million shares across three exchange-traded funds: 1,714,522 shares in ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK), 545,416 shares in ARK Next Generation Internet ETF (ARKW), and 272,755 shares in ARK Fintech Innovation ETF (ARKF). At Wednesday's close, the purchases were valued at about $172 million.
Bullish CEO Thomas Farley, a former NYSE Group president, told investors in a letter that "the digital assets industry is beginning its next leg of growth," and said he believes the sector is "at the inflection point of institutional adoption." He added, "Bullish is uniquely positioned at the center of this market... and is proud to be the one bringing this proven framework to the crypto landscape."
The exchange caters to institutional-sized clients, processing an average of $2.6 billion in daily spot and derivatives volume in the first quarter, according to its prospectus. The company operates through subsidiaries in Hong Kong, Singapore, the United Kingdom, Germany, Gibraltar, and the Cayman Islands.
Bullish's IPO marked its second attempt to go public. A 2021 plan to merge with a special purpose acquisition company in a $9 billion deal fell through amid regulatory scrutiny and adverse market conditions. Its debut this week comes against the backdrop of a cryptocurrency rally-Bitcoin is up over 30% year-to-date, Ethereum more than 40%, and XRP 57%-as well as a revival in U.S. IPO activity, with 133 offerings worth over $50 million so far this year, up 58% from the same period in 2024, per Renaissance Capital.
