Author: Dingdang, Odaily Planet Daily
On June 5, 2025, stablecoin giant Circle officially listed on the New York Stock Exchange, with an issue price set at $31 per share, significantly higher than the early estimate of $24 to $26. What's even more remarkable is that as of now, the post-market price of CRCL soared to $214, with a market capitalization exceeding $48 billion, accumulating a nearly 600% increase in just over ten days. Meanwhile, new crypto concept stocks such as SBET and SRM have also shown strong performance. (For details, refer to: (Crypto Bull Market, All in US Stocks: Circle's Journey from $31 to $165 in Ten Days))
Against the backdrop of a continuously improving regulatory environment in the U.S. and accelerated entry of institutional funds, the trend of crypto companies 'heading to Wall Street' is rapidly gaining momentum. By business focus, exchanges, stablecoins, and mining have all had representatives, and this time the crypto prime broker FalconX is reported to be preparing for an IPO this year. This $8 billion valued company, serving global institutional investors, is trying to seize the timing window of this 'institutionalization wave' and gain a first-mover advantage in the capital market.
Starting from Silicon Valley, how does FalconX run the crypto prime brokerage route?
FalconX was born in Silicon Valley in 2018, a place adept at transforming technology narratives into capital myths. Co-founder Prabhakar Reddy has a strong background in cross-border financial infrastructure; his early venture OpenFX focused on technical services for the foreign exchange market and laid a solid foundation for FalconX's trading system.
Unlike crypto exchanges aimed at retail investors, FalconX has targeted institutional clients since its inception, clearly positioning itself as a 'crypto prime broker,' focusing on providing comprehensive services for professional investors, with its business covering three core areas:
Aggregating liquidity from multiple exchanges and smart order routing to achieve efficient matching and cost optimization.
Providing structured financing and crypto asset collateral loan services to meet institutional flexible financing needs.
Expanding asset management and derivatives strategy products to create a complete solution for institutional investment portfolios.
As of 2025, FalconX has established global offices in New York, London, Singapore, Silicon Valley, Bangalore, Valletta, and other seven locations, essentially completing the preliminary setup of its institutional service network.
The FalconX team combines dual genes from traditional finance and technology, with core members from top companies such as JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, PayPal, Kraken, Affirm, and Microsoft, possessing both rigorous risk control capabilities and excellent technical execution.
In 2022, the company completed a $150 million financing, with a valuation soaring to $8 billion, backed by well-known institutional investors such as GIC, Tiger Global, Accel, and Lightspeed, further enhancing its brand image favored by institutions.
Accelerating mergers and expansion, FalconX's 2025.
Entering 2025, FalconX has significantly accelerated its pace of business expansion, focusing on key layouts around derivatives markets, institutional financing, and asset management, with strategic intentions increasingly clear.
In January 2025, acquired the derivatives startup Arbelos Markets, further enhancing its capabilities in structural product design and risk hedging.
In March 2025, in collaboration with StoneX, launch Solana futures products on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) and complete the first large-scale transaction, while becoming a major liquidity provider for CME's crypto derivatives.
In May 2025, in collaboration with Cantor Fitzgerald, completed the first Bitcoin-backed financing transaction and plans to provide up to $2 billion in financing for institutional clients. At the same time, established a strategic partnership with global bank Standard Chartered to further bridge the gap between traditional finance and the crypto market using its banking and foreign exchange service capabilities.
In June 2025, acquired a majority stake in asset management company Monarq Asset Management (formerly LedgerPrime, originally part of the FTX ecosystem), expanding FalconX's product capabilities and client reach in asset management and quantitative trading.
Through a series of mergers, product launches, and strategic partnerships, FalconX is gradually transforming from a 'broker' role focused on single trade matching to a platform-based financial service provider covering multiple assets and service modules. These initiatives not only enrich its business matrix but also build a more persuasive capital narrative for the upcoming IPO preparation.
Why go public at this time? The capital logic and rhythm control behind the IPO.
Insiders reveal that FalconX has begun informal discussions with investment banking advisors to assess the feasibility of an IPO and may file for listing within the year.
Choosing to launch the IPO preparation at this moment is not a hasty decision. A series of landmark events have occurred in the crypto industry over the past few months.
Circle successfully landed on the NYSE, with its market value soaring to $48 billion in just over ten days, far exceeding market expectations. This feat greatly boosted investor confidence and quickly changed the capital market's risk pricing logic for crypto companies; leading platforms like Kraken, Gemini, and Bullish have also reported IPO preparation plans, and the capital window is gradually opening.
Meanwhile, the regulatory environment has undergone subtle changes. The new U.S. government has released friendlier signals, and the SEC's attitude has become more moderate, providing clearer expectations for crypto companies. The demand structure of institutional clients is also quietly shifting from single trades to structured financing, derivatives management, and comprehensive risk allocation, highlighting the increasing significance of prime brokers.
Amid various signals, FalconX seems to have found its moment. Not as a follower but as an attempt to become a pioneer in this institutional cycle. For FalconX, the IPO is not just a fundraising opportunity but a critical node for brand reshaping and strategic leap: from a 'high-growth startup' to a 'global crypto financial infrastructure provider.' The recognition from the public market will become an important endorsement of its credibility.
Of course, while the window is open, it won't last long. The emotional dividend ignited by Circle is still ongoing, but the capital market's rhythm is always changing rapidly. If FalconX cannot smoothly enter this round of cycle, the next window may have to wait several years or even a complete market cycle.
As of now, FalconX has not officially hired an investment bank for underwriting, which is a routine first step to initiate the IPO process, indicating that the IPO is still in the early preparation stage and there are still many uncertainties.
Potential concerns: Organizational adjustments and a wave of executive departures.
It is worth noting that while FalconX is rapidly expanding, it also faces challenges in organizational management.
In March 2025, reports surfaced of a wave of executive departures, including the head of Europe, credit director, general counsel, and chief compliance officer, among more than ten employees leaving one after another. It is rumored that this personnel fluctuation involves layoffs and voluntary resignations, but the company has not publicly responded to this.
In rapidly growing companies, personnel adjustments are not uncommon. However, for a company seeking an IPO, the stability of governance structures and continuity of the executive team are often seen by investors as important indicators of the company's maturity and risk management capabilities.
This also reminds the market: the test of the IPO is not only about revenue growth and customer expansion but also about whether the company can demonstrate stable and sustainable 'full-stack capabilities' across multiple dimensions such as capital, organization, personnel, and compliance.
Summary: Wall Street is opening its doors, the second half of the crypto prime brokerage begins.
Whether FalconX can successfully ring the bell at Nasdaq remains to be seen as more official signals are released. But it is certain that its series of strategic moves have clearly outlined the future profile:
After Circle opened the confidence window for crypto IPOs, FalconX is trying to enter the public eye as 'the next move in the wave of crypto institutionalization.' Its role is not just a valuation story of a single company but a symbolic turning point for the entire crypto industry moving from the margins to the mainstream.
Can it replicate Circle's capital miracle? And can it avoid the resonance of the valuation peak and price decline that Coinbase experienced in 2021? The answers to these questions may gradually emerge in its upcoming prospectus.
But what is certain is that in this new cycle of capital, trust, and institutional synergy, FalconX is no longer an observer.
