Cryptocurrency companies fly over stock market in more regulated environment and after Trump win | Crypto assets

Donald Trump’s landslide victory and the Federal Reserve’s 0.25 point interest rate cut ensured markets had a busy week. Prices in traditional markets have been on a rollercoaster ride, while cryptocurrencies, especially Bitcoin, have skyrocketed to new all-time highs, with Bitcoin now trading at $76,500. A Republican’s return to the White House represents a best-case scenario for these assets and for companies ecosystems that are awaiting a change of course in the United States, involving a relaxation of regulation and a change in SEC leadership. Companies in this sector hope to finally find an enabling environment in which they can go public.

In fact, for months, markets have been speculating on the possibility that cryptocurrency providers and firms connected to the ecosystem would make the leap following Coinbase, which began trading on the Nasdaq in April 2021, giving rise to Bitcoin. set new all-time highs for that time. Since its debut, the cryptocurrency platform has grown by 6.3%. Within a year it is restored by 70%. Experts believe US regulators’ reluctance towards cryptocurrencies, as well as general uncertainty in the industry, have contributed to the IPO drought in recent years, a trend that is also noticeable in the traditional market. “The sector is under intense regulatory pressure and faces enormous uncertainty. In addition, he has just overcome the crypto winter. Platforms that use pure crypto assets typically make money from transactions, and if the market is down, their revenues drop. So, considering going public in this scenario, I don’t think it’s a priority for a company of this caliber,” says Mariona Pericas Estrada, senior associate at finReg360.

However, after the election results and Trump’s return to the White House, something may change. The deregulation of the sector promised by the tycoon should lead, according to Gloria Hernandez Aler, co-founder and partner of finReg360, to softer and simpler regulation than the European one. “It will be friendly regulation, and when there is such regulation, it will be much easier for the regulated company to go public. And the environment will be much more conducive to encouraging companies,” he explains. In fact, the second company to take this step may be Circle radio station. stablecoin USDC, which will move its headquarters from Boston to New York in 2025 after submitting its intentions to the SEC last January, according to Bloomberg. However, this has not yet been formalized.

Among the companies rumored to make the leap are industry giants such as exchange American Kraken. Its main market is the North American country, although the firm is looking to expand its influence in Europe. However, when asked about their intentions, the company was non-committal: “We are always looking for new strategies to achieve our mission: to accelerate the global adoption of cryptocurrencies. We remain fully focused on investing in this goal,” they say. Five days. The analytical platform Chainaanalysis is also involved in rumors about a future debut on the markets, whose managers also did not want to confirm the rumors.

Trading platform eToro appears to have the clearest idea, confirming that a stock market debut is in its plans following the cancellation of its SPAC merger. “For a company passionate about capital markets, the question is when eToro will go public rather than if it will go public. “We continue to evaluate the right time and market for a future IPO,” they admitted to the newspaper. Companies take time and are careful. In the US, regulation, which currently does not exist, although weak, is a priority not only for companies, but also for savers. Indeed, a Bloomberg Intelligence report highlights that the vast majority of institutional investors want more regulatory clarity before increasing their exposure to digital assets.

European scenario

In this sense, the US is one step behind Europe, where MiCA will come into force at the end of the year. Pablo Romero of the consulting firm Carbono emphasizes that European regulation helps “clarify activities such as fiat/crypto intermediation or the issuance of tokens linked to the price of currencies,” which will provide greater business certainty and encourage companies. make the leap to the markets. “Especially considering that in Europe there are stock exchanges that are investing in attracting this investing public, opening up new lines of business like digital exchange“

Without a doubt, these regulations have come at a favorable time, with Bitcoin setting all-time highs. According to Mariona Pericas, if this upward trend continues, investment appetite will increase, both institutional and retail. “This allows these companies to consolidate and listing is likely to be a natural step for them. Just like others will fall because they won’t pass MiCA. I believe that the time will come for great acquisitions, many partnership to see a consolidated and strong Central European sector,” he says.

There were also rumors in the European environment about a possible IPO of Bitpanda. Bloomberg recently reported that the Austrian brokerage is considering a Frankfurt debut in 2025 with a valuation of more than $4 billion, citing people familiar with the matter. The firm does not wish to comment on the matter to the newspaper.

But going public will not be the only option in the hands of this industry. Carlos Salinas, M.Sc. blockchain and digital asset investments from IEB, believes that more and more companies are choosing to remain in private markets, where they face fewer regulatory requirements and can access capital without the high costs of a stock market debut. “In the crypto sector, this trend is being reinforced by additional factors such as regulatory uncertainty and the rise of financing alternatives,” he argues.

Private credit markets and venture capital funds have given these firms access to capital without subjecting themselves to the strict regulations and costs associated with an IPO. But another method is added to this: tokenization. “This is becoming relevant on the continent. As MiCA is implemented and tokenization mechanisms develop, we may see a combination of IPOs and STOs (security token offering, i.e. a token offering, the equivalent of a public offering for sale) in Europe, especially in the sectors fintech and blockchain”, details.

Gloria Hernández Aler agrees with this aspect and considers it necessary to regulate a pilot regime for market infrastructure based on decentralized ledger technologies (DLT). ” exchanges They usually know this technology. These markets have no middlemen, are more cost effective and more flexible. So I think there will be some consistency for this type of technology company to go to market with this kind of technology base.”

These days, companies like exchange Bit2Me started its tests in sandbox CNMV to test the tokenized securities exchange infrastructure (Bit2Me STX). “There is nothing stopping them or other competitors from listing on this infrastructure. Just like BME, which went public on BME,” Hernandez concludes. In this sense, Bit2Me explains that Bit2Me STX is designed for technology companies with growing and promising expectations. scaling: “And Bit2Me, why not, could be one of them,” say sources in the company, although they assure that they are not currently thinking about going public: “At the moment we prefer private capital,” they say.