Bullish, the digital asset exchange backed by billionaire investor Peter Thiel, has filed confidential paperwork with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for an initial public offering (IPO), according to sources cited by the Financial Times.
American investment bank Jefferies has been tapped as the lead underwriter for the offering, per the report. Bullish has not issued a public statement on its plans.
The move positions Bullish among a wave of crypto companies looking to capitalize on renewed investor enthusiasm and a friendlier regulatory tone under US President Donald Trump.
The company, which previously attempted to go public via a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) deal in 2021, saw its earlier efforts collapse as markets soured amid rising interest rates.
Related: Circle stock jumps 167% on NYSE debut
Crypto IPO successes inspire Bullish
Recent successes in the crypto IPO space appear to have emboldened Bullish’s move. Circle, the issuer of the USDC (USDC) stablecoin, raised $1.1 billion in its public debut last week, exceeding expectations and marking a record-setting 167% gain on its first day of trading.
On June 6, Gemini, the exchange founded by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, also filed confidentially for a US listing. Both brothers supported Trump’s reelection bid and have backed crypto-focused political action committees.
On May 14, social trading platform eToro officially debuted on the Nasdaq, under the ticker ETOR, following a confidential SEC filing and the appointment of Goldman Sachs to shepherd the process.
Bullish is led by CEO Tom Farley, a former president of the NYSE Group. Thiel, an early supporter of Bitcoin (BTC), previously donated to Trump’s 2016 election campaign.
Related: Circle raises IPO target to $896M amid strong investor interest
Crypto listings outpace IPOs
Despite the recent surge in IPO activity, data shows that crypto listings continue to outperform those on traditional stock exchanges.
According to a CoinMarketCap report shared on April 3, the average return on investment (ROI) for tokens listed on major crypto exchanges over the past 180 days exceeded 80%. This performance surpasses that of major stock indexes like the Nasdaq and Dow Jones.
The report also found that 68% of crypto listings delivered positive ROI, outpacing the NYSE’s 54% and Nasdaq’s 51%.
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