We’ve made it to midweek, folks. Though Ben is solo again, you’ll hear from Felix tomorrow.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves, as today many had their eyes on Bullish’s NYSE debut. Let’s dig into how some are viewing this now-public crypto platform.

Another crypto NYSE debut

We watched what happened when Circle listed on the NYSE two months ago. Today, the industry looked on as crypto exchange Bullish did the same.

Most would probably agree the debut did not disappoint, as Bullish stock jumped to more than triple its IPO price just minutes after going public.

Bullish yesterday revealed IPO pricing of 30 million shares at $37 per share — up from the $32-33 estimate it shared in a Monday filing.

BLSH shares opened at $90 around 1 pm ET — roughly 143% higher than the IPO price. The company’s stock quickly surged to $118, but had dropped near the opening price just after 2 pm ET.

A quick reminder that Circle stock debuted at $69 per share on June 5 (also more than double its IPO price of $31). Though the USDC issuer’s stock price peaked near $300 on June 23, CRCL shares were trading for around $156 midday Wednesday. 

All’s to say: Where Bullish’s stock price goes from here is anyone’s guess. 

Led by former NYSE president Tom Farley, Bullish launched in 2021 with backing from Block.one, Thiel Capital, Galaxy Digital, Nomura and others. It offers a spot and derivatives exchange, as well as liquidity services; Bullish also owns crypto media company CoinDesk.

Bullish (as of March 31) held $1.7 billion worth of bitcoin, $144 million of US dollar stablecoins, $28 million in cash and $55 million of ETH and other digital assets, the Monday filing shows.

The company’s roughly $1.8 billion in cash and crypto makes it one of the most well-financed companies in the space, noted Architect Partners VP Ryan McCulloch.

“By buying this stock, you are heavily invested in their future potential to invest this cash,” he told me.

What are the most similar public crypto companies to Bullish? McCulloch labeled Amber Group and OSL Group, given those are Asia-focused exchanges offering a similar suite of services. 

But Amber Group and OSL Group are trading at enterprise values around $600 million and $1.4 billion, respectively, he explained — significantly lower than the roughly $13 billion valuation Bullish went public with.

“They get significantly more public exposure via the media business, which likely serves as free lead generation for the trading business and vice versa,” McCulloch said. “This is far different than any others and seems to provide a unique market positioning.”

Matthew Sigel, who manages the VanEck Onchain Economy ETF (NODE), also noted Bullish’s sizable bitcoin treasury — enabling tighter spreads and “competitive positioning” in both spot and derivatives markets. 

“These capabilities can compound across trading, data and index businesses,” Sigel added. “In a bull scenario based on our internal modeling, there is a path to $600 million in revenue and $200 million in EBITDA.”

This won’t be the last crypto company to IPO. Gemini, Grayscale, BitGo and Figure Technology have confidentially filed draft registration statements with the SEC.

We’ll see who else might look to follow suit.

— Ben Strack

It’s the summer of DATs and the party is going strong. 

But when October rolls around, everyone will be looking to DAS: London to hear from these meta-defining voices on where things stand and where they’re headed.

Get your ticket today with promo code: FGNL 

📅 October 13-15 | London

• US ether ETFs saw another strong day of net inflows, with $524 million entering those funds Tuesday. The segment has tallied more than $2.3 billion of inflows over the past six trading days.

• ETH was trading around $4,720 at 2 pm ET — about 3% off the all-time high it reached in November 2021. Bitcoin also sat just below its peak price Wednesday afternoon, with the asset trading for $121,800. 

• Hungry for a new Forward Guidance episode? You’re in luck: Felix’s interview with labor market economist Guy Berger just dropped.

— Ben Strack