Peter Thiel’s Crypto Exchange Bullish Files for U.S. IPO

Bullish, the Peter Thiel-backed crypto exchange, has confidentially filed for an initial public offering in the United States. The move signals that the company is ready to take another swing at going public after its first attempt, via SPAC, fizzled out during the crypto market’s downturn in 2021. The Bullish IPO is a calculated second attempt to go public, this time under better market conditions and with less noise.

The filing allows Bullish to test the waters with regulators and investors behind the scenes before putting all its cards on the table.

Why It Matters Now

The timing is no accident. Bitcoin is back above $110,000, crypto stocks are heating up, and U.S. political winds are turning in crypto’s favor. Earlier this month, Circle pulled off a successful IPO, raising over $1 billion. Gemini has also filed confidentially.

JUST IN: Peter Theil-backed crypto group, Bullish, files for Wall Street IPO. pic.twitter.com/U9RSMkXecV

— Whale Insider (@WhaleInsider) June 11, 2025

For Bullish, the window looks open again. Instead of waiting to see if the rally sticks, it’s moving while investor appetite is still high.

What Makes Bullish Different

Bullish launched in 2021 with $300 million in backing from Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund, Galaxy Digital, and others. It pitched itself as a high-performance crypto exchange tailored to institutions, think hedge funds, not hobbyists.

Unlike more casual trading apps, Bullish is focused on serious infrastructure: strong liquidity, tight trading spreads, and tools designed for professional volume. It’s based in Gibraltar but wants a presence on U.S. public markets. That’s a big leap from its original SPAC plans, which were shelved when crypto collapsed in 2022.

Tom Farley, the former president of the New York Stock Exchange, now leads the company. Jefferies is acting as the lead underwriter, though Bullish hasn’t said when it plans to list or what valuation it’s chasing.

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What’s Changed Since 2021

Back then, Bullish tried to go public with a $9 billion valuation via a merger with Far Peak Acquisition Corp. That deal fell apart when the market tanked. Now the landscape looks very different.

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Crypto has bounced back, at least partially. Institutional interest is on the rise. U.S. regulators, while still murky in their approach, seem more open to letting certain companies through the IPO gates. And companies like Circle and Bullish are taking full advantage of the moment.

Part of a Bigger Wave

Bullish isn’t alone. It joins a fresh lineup of crypto-native firms eyeing public listings. Circle’s success set a precedent. Gemini is quietly preparing for its turn. Even Robinhood and Coinbase are benefiting from the broader mood swing.

For investors, this means more regulated ways to gain exposure to the crypto sector without directly holding tokens.

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What Comes Next

Bullish will need to survive SEC scrutiny, market itself to investors, and eventually publish its numbers. That’s when we’ll find out how strong the business really is — whether it has the revenue, user growth, and market volume to stand out.

If the IPO goes through and performs well, it could give the industry another shot of confidence. If not, it will reinforce how hard it still is to bridge crypto and Wall Street.

Bottom Line

Bullish is making a second run at the public markets, but this time it’s doing it quietly, strategically, and with a market backdrop that finally looks promising again. Whether this gamble pays off will depend on more than hype; it’ll come down to performance, timing, and whether investors believe crypto’s institutional future starts here. With a stronger pitch to institutions and a seasoned Wall Street CEO at the helm, the Bullish IPO could land differently this time.

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