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The cryptocurrency market has flourished this year and global financial institutions have taken this digital asset seriously for the first time in its existence. Wall Street-based institutional investors and big banks have also started to hold crypto-assets in their portfolios.
Coinbase Global Holdings Inc. (COIN: US, NASDAQ: COIN) became the first crypto exchange to go public on New York-based NASDAQ via direct listing on April 14.
However, the world’s largest crypto exchange, Binance, has no plans to go public.
As investors place more funds in this upcoming space, here are six crypto-related companies that could come with their initial public offering (IPO) or direct listing this year.
1. Kraken
Kraken crypto exchange CEO Jesse Powell reportedly intends to unlock its potential via a direct listing on the US stock exchanges. It is expected to be made public in the second half of 2022.
Kraken is a crypto-centric startup that also provides application programming interface solutions to mutual funds, pension funds, and hedge funds. Its crypto trading app records nearly US $ 2 billion in daily trading volume.
It also offers beginner training courses in decentralized finance (DeFi) and non-fungible tokens (NFT), and cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum.
2. Ripple
Blockchain payments firm Ripple is considering an IPO for its common stock after the lawsuit with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) settles over the status of its native crypto token XRP.
SBI Group, a Japanese finance company, is the largest external stakeholder in the blockchain-based payments company. The Japanese firm is also supporting its IPO head-on.
XRP tokens are worth over US $ 86 billion, with a total supply of around $ 100 billion. However, it is trading below US $ 1 a coin against its all-time high of US $ 3.40 a coin due to the ongoing legal dispute with the SEC in the US. The company has faced massive repercussions as a result of this legal battle, as major crypto exchanges have banned its token from their trading platforms.
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SCE claims that the fintech company illegally raised US $ 1.3 billion through unregistered security offers. While the company has already witnessed the first legal triumphs in this case, investors in the crypto market are still awaiting the court’s final ruling.
If Ripple manages to get this verdict in its favor, its listing could beat Coinbase’s direct listing this year. Currently, XRP is trading in the bearish zone led by Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt (FUD).
3. Intercontinental Crypto Exchange Bakkt
The company offers various crypto-related offerings, such as crypto wallet, exchange, peer-to-peer transaction platform, and custodial services.
In January, the cryptocurrency exchange announced that it would merge with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) called VPC Impact Acquisition Holdings (US: HIV, NASDAQ: HIV).
Shares of the blank check company are trading on the Nasdaq stock market at US $ 10.32 each, with a cumulative return of more than two percent. VPC’s market capitalization is US $ 267 million.
The merger will create a joint entity called Bakkt Holdings worth US $ 2.1 billion and VPC Impact Acquisition Holdings will be delisted from the NASDAQ stock exchange.
The merged company will be listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). However, the company has yet to confirm an official date for the next IPO.
4. Gemini
The US-based cryptocurrency exchange Gemini was founded by the infamous Winklevoss twins – Tyler and Cameron. They announced its launch in June 2013 and go live in late 2015. The company is said to run on the fourth generation blockchain operating system, which can run on the 5G internet.
The company has global partners including Samsung, Nifty Gateway and TradingView.
Gemini Trust Company, LLC enables its clients to buy, sell and trade digital assets on its platform.
The co-founders are said to have plans to go public with Gemini, but no timeline has been set. In media interviews, President Cameron mentioned watching the market closely to decide when to go public. He added that the company was positively open to an IPO, which may be in line with Coinbase’s DPO.
5. BlockFi
Crypto lender BlockFi engages in digital asset trading and provides loans on crypto assets. It also offers crypto savings accounts with interest rates of up to 8.6% annual percentage return.
In the first quarter of 2021, the blockchain company raised US $ 350 million, bringing the company’s total valuation to US $ 3 billion.
The company has also explored listing options over the past year. In mid-2020, the company issued a hiring note for a Chief Financial Officer (CFO) who can lead the finance team for end-stage investing, IPO, and acquisition. It could be made public in 2022, according to reports.
6. Apifiny
The crypto asset trading network offers its users various crypto exchanges to pool liquidity with a set of application programming interfaces. The company plans to go public by the end of 2021.
The company’s management reportedly intend to go public to bolster its overall growth ahead of the impending listing process this year.
On June 10, the “crypto exchange” recruited Erez Simha as the new chairman and chief financial officer to go public at the earliest. He is the former CFO of Mercurity Fintech Holdings Inc. (MFH: US, NASDAQ: MFH).
Please Note: The above is a preliminary view and any interest in stocks should be further assessed from an investment perspective. The benchmark data in this article comes in part from Refinitiv.
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