FalconX is going public. Will the first crypto broker copy Circle or Coinbase?

الأصل | Odaily Planet Daily ( @أوديلي تشاينا )

Author | Dingdang ( @XiaMiPP )

On June 5, 2025, the stablecoin giant Circle was officially listed on the New York Stock تبادل, with an issue price of $31 per share, significantly higher than the early estimate of $24 to $26. What is even more remarkable is that, as of now, the after-hours price of CRCL has climbed to $214, with a market value of over $48 billion. In just over ten days, the cumulative increase was close to 600%. At the same time, a new batch of تشفير concept stocks such as SBET and SRM also performed strongly. ( For details, please refer to: Crypto bull market, all in US stocks: Circles ten days from $31 to $165 )

As the US regulatory environment continues to improve and institutional funds are accelerating, the trend of crypto companies rushing to Wall Street is accelerating. According to the main business positioning, exchanges, stablecoins, and mining have representatives, and this time the crypto prime broker FalconX is reported to be preparing for a listing plan this year . The company, which is valued at $8 billion and serves global institutional investors, is trying to seize the time window of this institutionalization wave and seize the capital market opportunity.

Starting from Silicon Valley, how did FalconX develop into a crypto prime broker?

FalconX was born in Silicon Valley in 2018, a place that excels at transforming technology narratives into capital myths. Co-founder Prabhakar Reddy has a deep background in cross-border financial infrastructure. His early OpenFX focused on foreign exchange market technology services, which also laid a solid trading system foundation for FalconX.

Unlike crypto exchanges that cater to retail investors, FalconX has been targeting institutional clients since its inception, and has clearly positioned itself as a crypto prime broker that focuses on providing a full range of services to professional investors. Its business covers three core sectors:

• Aggregate liquidity and smart order routing from multiple exchanges to achieve efficient matching and cost optimization;

• Provide structured financing and crypto asset mortgage services to meet the flexible financing needs of institutions;

• Expand asset management and derivative strategy products to create a complete solution for institutional investment portfolios.

As of 2025, FalconX has established global offices in seven locations including New York, London, Singapore, Silicon Valley, Bangalore, and Valletta, and has basically completed the initial construction of its institutional service network.

FalconXs team combines the dual genes of traditional finance and technology. Its core members come from top companies such as JPMorgan Chase, Citi, PayPal, Kraken, Affirm and Microsoft, and have both rigorous risk control capabilities and excellent technical execution.

In 2022, the company completed a financing of US$150 million, and its valuation jumped to US$8 billion. Investors behind it include well-known institutional capital such as GIC, Tiger Global, Accel, and Lightspeed, adding weight to its brand image favored by institutions.

FalconX accelerates MA expansion in 2025

Entering 2025, FalconX has significantly accelerated the pace of business expansion, focusing on the three major sectors of derivatives market, institutional financing and asset management , and its strategic intentions are becoming increasingly clear:

In January 2025 , it acquired derivatives startup Arbelos سوقs to further enhance its capabilities in structured product design and risk hedging;

In March 2025, in cooperation with StoneX, Solana launched the Solana futures product on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) and completed the first block trade, becoming the main liquidity provider for CME crypto derivatives.

In May 2025, in cooperation with Cantor Fitzgerald, it completed the first Bitcoin-backed financing transaction and plans to provide institutional clients with a financing line of up to US$2 billion . At the same time, it established a strategic partnership with the global bank Standard Chartered to further open up the channel between traditional finance and the crypto market with its banking and foreign exchange service capabilities;

In June 2025 , it acquired a majority stake in asset management company Monarq Asset Management (formerly LedgerPrime, originally part of the FTX ecosystem), expanding FalconXs product capabilities and customer reach in the areas of asset management and quantitative trading.

Through a series of mergers and acquisitions, product launches and strategic cooperation, FalconX is gradually transforming from a single transaction matchmaking broker role to a platform-based financial service provider covering multiple assets and multiple service modules. These measures not only enrich its business matrix, but also build a more convincing capital narrative for the upcoming IPO preparations.

Why go public now? The capital logic and rhythm control behind IPO

Sources revealed that FalconX has started informal contact with investment bank advisors to evaluate the feasibility of an IPO and may submit an application for listing within the year .

Choosing this moment to start the listing preparation is not a hasty move. In the past few months, a series of landmark events have taken place in the encryption industry.

Circle successfully landed on the New York Stock Exchange, and its market value soared to $48 billion in more than ten days after listing, far exceeding market expectations. This feat greatly boosted investor confidence and quickly changed the capital markets risk pricing logic for crypto companies; Kraken, Gemini, Bullish and other leading platforms have also announced IPO preparation plans, and the capital window is gradually opening.

At the same time, the regulatory environment has undergone subtle changes. The new US government has sent out more friendly signals, and the SECs attitude has become more moderate, providing crypto companies with clearer expectations. The demand structure of institutional clients has also quietly changed, from single transactions to structured financing, derivatives management and comprehensive risk allocation, and the status of prime brokers has become increasingly prominent.

With all these signals intertwined, FalconX seems to have found its timing. It is not a follower, but an attempt to become a pioneer in this institutionalized cycle. For FalconX, the IPO is not only a fundraising opportunity, but also a key node for brand reshaping and strategic leap: from a high-growth startup to a global crypto financial infrastructure provider, the recognition of the public market will become an important endorsement of its credibility.

بالطبع، the window will not last long. The emotional dividend ignited by Circle is still continuing, and the rhythm of the capital market has always been changing rapidly. If FalconX cannot successfully enter the market during this cycle, it may take several years or even a complete market cycle for the next window to open.

As of now, FalconX has not yet officially hired an investment bank to underwrite the offering, which is the usual first step in launching the listing process. This means that the IPO is still in the early stages of preparation and there are still many uncertainties.

Potential concerns: organizational adjustments and executive departures

It is worth noting that while FalconX is expanding rapidly, it also faces organizational and management challenges.

In March 2025, the company was exposed to a large number of senior executives leaving the company, including the head of Europe, the head of credit, the general counsel and the chief compliance officer. It is said that this personnel fluctuation involves layoffs and voluntary resignations, and the company has not made a public response to this.

Personnel changes are not uncommon in fast-growing companies. However, for a company seeking an IPO, the stability of its governance structure and the continuity of its executive team are often viewed by investors as important indicators of a company鈥檚 maturity and risk management capabilities.

This also reminds the market: the test of IPO lies not only in revenue growth and customer expansion, but also in whether the company can demonstrate stable and sustainable full-stack capabilities in multiple dimensions such as capital, organization, personnel and compliance .

Summary: Wall Street opens its doors, and the second half of crypto prime brokerage begins

Whether FalconX can successfully ring the bell of Nasdaq still needs more official signals. But what is certain is that its series of strategic actions have clearly outlined the future:

After Circle opened the confidence window for crypto IPOs, FalconX is trying to enter the public eye as the next step in the crypto institutionalization wave. Its role is not just a valuation story for a certain company, but also a symbolic turning point for the entire crypto industry from the margins to the mainstream.

Can it replicate Circles capital miracle? Can it avoid the resonance of valuation highs and falling coin prices that Coinbase encountered in 2021? The answers to these questions may gradually emerge in its upcoming prospectus.

But one thing is certain: in this new cycle of capital, trust and institutional synergy, FalconX is no longer a bystander.

This article is sourced from the internet: FalconX is going public. Will the first crypto broker copy Circle or Coinbase?

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