Bullish, a cryptocurrency exchange backed by blockchain software company block.one, is gearing up to go public through a merger with special purpose acquisition company(SPAC) Far Peak Acquisition Corp. The merger, which values the firm at a whopping $9 billion, is expected to wrap up by late 2021 and will put Bullish in the same league as other publicly traded crypto exchanges such as Coinbase and Bakkt.

Crypto Exchange Bullish Prepares for Public Listing With SPAC Merger

As part of the deal, Bullish will be acquired by Far Peak Acquisition Corporation, which is helmed by former New York Stock Exchange(NYSE) president Tom Farley. Farley will oversee operations at the combined company as its new chief executive. 

The cost of this merger is estimated at $9 billion, although the final value would be adjusted according to the prices of crypto assets. The capital raised for the deal includes $300 million of committed private investment in a public entity or PIPE, from EFM Asset Management. Other contributors to the funding include BlackRock Inc., Cryptology Asset Group, and Galaxy Digital.

Meanwhile, block.one owned EOS token reacted positively to the merger announcement with a 10% spike in its value. Far Peak’s stock has also been trading in the green as of press time.

Bullish was founded in May by block.one, which is backed by venture capitalist Peter Thiel and hedge fund managers Alan Howard and Louis Bacon. It has also received investments from Hong Kong business magnate Richard Li and German entrepreneur Christian Angermayer.

More Crypto Firms Are Opting to Go Public

Coinbase’s listing on Nasdaq represented a milestone for the crypto industry, where many firms are vying for wider acceptance and a bigger share of the market. But many of these entities might find it difficult to list their stocks on equity exchanges via a direct listing. For these firms, SPAC mergers offer a great option to expand the scope of dealings. 

Be it direct listing or SPAC mergers, but the list of crypto firms going public is growing. Just yesterday, Circle Internet Financial Inc., part of the consortium behind the USDC stablecoin, announced its plans for public listing through a SPAC.

However, a public listing comes with its own set of risks and may not pan out as per the expectations of a company. For instance, Coinbase made a stellar debut on the Nasdaq exchange, but its stock plunged considerably during the recent crypto crash, which forced other companies like Kraken to reconsider their plans for an IPO.