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Crypto IPOs Crash: What Went Wrong?
19 Oct
Summary
- Most crypto IPOs have seen significant stock declines.
- Circle and Hyperliquid are notable exceptions to the trend.
- Commodity services and hyper-competition hurt crypto firms.
Since early 2025, while the broader U.S. stock market has experienced a boom with numerous successful IPOs, most newly-public cryptocurrency companies have faced significant stock performance issues. Among those that pursued traditional IPOs, only Circle is trading near its initial listing price, largely due to a substantial opening day gain. Figure, a blockchain-based mortgage lender, is down approximately 19% from its September 2025 listing, a stark contrast to the S&P 500's 13% gain during the same period.
Other prominent crypto firms, including BitGo, Bullish, and eToro, have experienced even steeper declines, with share prices falling between 55% and 65%. Gemini has had a particularly rough time, its stock price shrinking by nearly 90% since its September 2025 IPO, reducing its market capitalization significantly. Companies that opted for non-traditional routes like SPACs have also largely underperformed. Galaxy and Securitize are considered market flops, while CoinShares and American Bitcoin have seen over 50% and 93% stock drops, respectively.
The sole standout among non-traditional IPOs is Hyperliquid Strategies, which has surged over 200% since its debut earlier in 2026. This widespread underperformance, even with White House support, can be partly attributed to inflated market conditions that encouraged less scrutiny from underwriters and investors. More specific business challenges, such as offering undifferentiated commodity services in a hyper-competitive landscape, have also contributed to the downturn for many firms.
Future crypto IPO candidates, such as Payward (formerly Kraken), MetaMask, and Ledger, are likely to face a more cautious investment environment. Lessons from the 2025 IPO wave suggest that investors should proceed with extreme caution. Success for blockchain-first firms as public entities will likely depend on achieving significant scale and offering strong products, akin to Circle, or demonstrating clever business models and strong executive leadership, as seen with Hyperliquid Strategies.
