Bullish (BLSH) experienced a significant surge of 10% on Thursday, following the crucial achievement of a regulatory milestone that paves the way for its entry into the U.S. market. This development comes as the company, which also owns the cryptocurrency publication CoinDesk, shared its first quarterly results since its public listing on the New York Stock Exchange just last month.
During an earnings call, CEO Tom Farley, who previously held the position of president at the NYSE Group, revealed that Bullish secured a vital license from the New York State Department of Financial Services, known as the BitLicense. This regulatory approval is essential for the company’s plans to expand its services in the United States. “While we have already had the ability to operate in many states because of our regulatory approval, we refrained from launching our exchange in the United States until we received the New York State Department of Financial Services BitLicense,” Farley explained. He expressed optimism about the future, stating, “We received that license yesterday, and we look forward to bringing our exchange and our leading liquidity to the United States imminently, and we believe this to be the largest geographic market by far.”
Analyst Gautam Chhugani from Bernstein and his team highlighted that Bullish is on track for a successful launch in the U.S. and is gearing up for a rollout of crypto options, expected in the fourth quarter of 2025. He described these developments as key growth catalysts that will benefit the company in the upcoming quarters. Additionally, Chhugani noted that Bullish now holds multiple tier-one regulatory licenses, including those from German BaFin, Hong Kong SFC, and the U.S. BitLicense. This diverse licensing significantly enhances Bullish’s standing as a globally regulated institutional crypto exchange, positioning it for future growth in major crypto markets.
