Bullish debuted on the NYSE at $90, jumping 143% above its IPO price of $37

Bullish exploded onto Wall Street on Wednesday, launching its IPO on the New York Stock Exchange and pulling in $1.1 billion in the process, according to data from CNBC.

The crypto exchange priced its public debut way above projections, kicking off at $90 a share, a massive jump from its set IPO price of $37. The stock briefly surged to $118 before cooling off and closing at $68, still locking in an 83% gain on day one.

The offering handed the company a $5.4 billion valuation before a single share even traded. The IPO range had already been raised twice before the launch, first from $28 to $31, then again to $32 to $33, but even those adjustments didn’t come close to the final open.

The market reaction shows that demand for crypto-focused companies is back in full force under President Donald Trump’s administration, which has been leaning openly pro-crypto.

Unlike retail-heavy exchanges, Bullish is built for institutional traders, combining crypto’s DeFi architecture with the compliance and structure of a traditional company. The firm is led by Tom Farley, former New York Stock Exchange president, with backing from tech billionaire Peter Thiel.

Farley told CNBC’s Squawk on the Street on Wednesday that crypto’s early growth came from everyday traders, but now, the shift is clear.

“The last leg of growth in crypto, the last 10 years, was basically all retail and … the institutional wave has begun,” he said. “It’s here, and it’s a question of how big it will be. Based on the reception we’ve gotten thus far as part of our IPO, it feels like institutional investors feel like this could be the moment.”

Bullish joins other crypto firms racing to list under Trump

This IPO isn’t happening in a vacuum. Bullish is joining a string of crypto companies rushing into the market while Trump’s government keeps crypto regulation on the lighter side. In June, Circle, which runs a major stablecoin operation, raised over $1 billion in its own debut.

Around the same time, Mike Novogratz moved Galaxy Digital from Toronto to the Nasdaq. eToro, a trading app for both stocks and crypto, listed with a matching $5.4 billion valuation. Both BitGo and Gemini have quietly filed for IPOs in the United States as well.

Since launching in 2021, Bullish has recorded over $1.25 trillion in trading volume. The company is based in the Cayman Islands, a preferred spot for crypto firms looking to dodge American overreach. Beyond its exchange business, Bullish also owns CoinDesk, a platform that handles crypto news, data, indexes, and analytics.

The listing landed on the same day U.S. markets pushed higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shot up 463.66 points, or 1.04%, closing at 44,922.27. The S&P 500 added 0.32%, finishing at 6,466.58, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.14% to 21,713.14. Both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq set new record highs for the second straight day.

Traders bet on September Fed rate cut as small-caps surge

Wednesday’s rally followed a softer-than-expected inflation report on Tuesday, which gave traders fresh confidence that the Federal Reserve will lower interest rates by September. Markets are now pricing in near certainty of that rate cut, using data from the CME’s FedWatch Tool.

The optimism around lower rates helped push small-cap stocks higher, with the Russell 2000 climbing 2.02% on the day. Investors have been shifting away from the Magnificent Seven mega-cap tech names, rotating into smaller companies that tend to benefit more when borrowing costs drop.

Big tech wasn’t left behind. AMD surged over 5%, and Apple moved up close to 2%. Shares of Paramount Skydance soared nearly 37%, fueled by separate investor momentum.

More signals are on the way. Thursday’s producer price index report is expected to give another look into wholesale inflation, which feeds into how much pressure the Fed is still under. That data will land just ahead of the Jackson Hole summit taking place from August 21 to 23, where Fed officials are expected to deliver more clues about future rate decisions.

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