Peter Thiel-backed crypto startup Bullish targets $4.82B in upsized IPO, plans to convert proceeds into stablecoins

Bullish is making another run at Wall Street — and it’s coming in bigger than before. The Peter Thiel-backed crypto exchange has boosted the size of its IPO, now aiming for a valuation of up to $4.82 billion, according to Reuters. That’s a sharp jump from last week’s $4.2 billion target, and it reflects a market that’s suddenly feeling warmer toward digital assets.

The move comes just three years after Bullish abandoned a $9 billion SPAC deal, citing regulatory uncertainty. This time, the company is going the traditional IPO route, selling 30 million shares priced between $32 and $33. At the top of that range, Bullish could raise about $990 million. That’s up from its earlier plan to sell 20.3 million shares at $28 to $31.

From NYSE to Stablecoins: Bullish’s Post-IPO Plan

There’s a twist that sets this offering apart from a typical tech listing: Bullish plans to convert a significant portion of its IPO proceeds into U.S. dollar-denominated stablecoins, according to the SEC filings.

“Several companies now have sizeable allocations to crypto. Bullish, too, plans to convert a significant portion of the IPO proceeds to U.S.-dollar-denominated stablecoins with the assistance of one or more issuers of such tokens,” Reuters reported.

The filing didn’t name the issuers, but it’s a strategy that echoes Circle’s high-profile NYSE debut in June. Circle’s stock has soared more than 400% since, giving investors a fresh example of how crypto firms can thrive when market sentiment and regulatory clarity align.

Investor interest appears strong. Certain funds and accounts managed by BlackRock and Cathie Wood’s ARK Investment have indicated plans to buy up to $200 million of shares in the offering. J.P. Morgan, Jefferies, and Citigroup are leading the deal, which is set to price on Tuesday, with trading expected to start the next day under the ticker symbol “FLY.”

Bullish is positioning itself as an institutional-grade crypto exchange. CEO Thomas Farley, a former New York Stock Exchange president, now returns to the floor from the issuer’s side of the bell. The company holds regulatory approvals in the U.S., Germany, Hong Kong, and Gibraltar. It also owns CoinDesk, the crypto media outlet it bought last year in an all-cash deal from Barry Silbert’s Digital Currency Group.

The IPO comes against a backdrop of crypto’s market value topping $4 trillion, with other heavyweights like Grayscale and Gemini filing to go public in recent months. Under U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration, regulatory wins for the industry have helped shift corporate attitudes from cautious to openly bullish. Several companies now hold sizeable crypto allocations as part of their treasury strategy.

Launched in 2020 by Block.one, the blockchain firm behind EOS, Bullish entered the market with one of the largest war chests in crypto history — $9.3 billion in bitcoin. Now, the question is whether a larger IPO and a stablecoin-heavy strategy can turn its second attempt into the success story it missed the first time.