Digital asset exchange operator Bullish has raised its target valuation for its initial public offering (IPO) by nearly 60% to a potential $990 million, indicating that investor interest is growing amid renewed momentum for cryptocurrency-related stocks.
According to Bloomberg reports on Monday, Bullish plans to sell 30 million shares at a price of $32 to $33 each. This is nearly 60% higher than the upper limit of the earlier target.
If the IPO meets expectations, Bullish will go public with a market capitalization of about $4.8 billion, higher than the $4.2 billion target set in early August.
This IPO is led by JPMorgan, Jefferies, and Citigroup. Bullish plans to list under the ticker 'BLSH'.
Several institutional investors, including subsidiaries of Blackstone and ARK Investment Management, have expressed interest in this issuance.
The company noted in its filings that increased activity in the digital asset market and the adoption by traditional financial institutions such as Blackstone, Fidelity, JPMorgan, and Goldman Sachs were key drivers of its decision to go public.
In addition to operating an institutional-grade digital asset platform, Bullish is also entering the crypto media space in November 2023 with the acquisition of CoinDesk for $72.6 million.
Institutional interest in digital assets has reached new highs.
Companies focused on cryptocurrencies like Bullish are looking to raise funds to facilitate growth, taking advantage of the currently strong market sentiment, while institutional interest in digital assets accelerates. They are following in the footsteps of stablecoin issuer Circle, which previously completed an IPO raising over $1 billion.
Since going public, Circle's market capitalization has risen to about $41 billion, with its stock price increasing by approximately 140%.
In addition to crypto-related stock offerings, institutional interest in digital assets is accelerating in other areas. In recent months, there has been a surge in fund inflows into Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) spot ETFs, and more publicly listed companies have added digital assets to their corporate treasuries, while university endowments and pension funds are also seeking investment opportunities in this asset class.
According to Bitbo's data, ETFs and listed and private companies collectively hold over 13.5% of the total Bitcoin supply.
