Crypto IPO Winter Arrives? Consensys and Ledger Hit the Pause Button

Original author: Ma He, Foresight News
On May 14, MetaMask wallet developer Consensys has temporarily postponed its IPO until at least this fall. Meanwhile, crypto hardware wallet giant Ledger also suspended its U.S. IPO plans on May 13. Previously, the exchange Kraken had been continuously delaying its listing plans. This series of IPO delays and suspensions indicates that after the crypto company listing boom in 2025, the IPO window for 2026 is clearly narrowing.
2025 is seen by the industry as the 'Year of IPO Harvest': Stablecoin issuer Circle successfully landed on the New York Stock Exchange, with companies like Bullish and Gemini completing their listings, and the exit channels for crypto VCs initially opened. In 2025, crypto-related IPOs raised about $14.6 billion, with total VC trading skyrocketing to $19.7 billion. BTC price once surged to a historic high of $126,000, with institutional funds pouring in and a relatively friendly regulatory environment, boosting the first-day performance of multiple crypto stocks.
As we enter 2026, Bitcoin prices have significantly corrected, trading volumes have declined, and investors' risk appetite for crypto stocks has cooled rapidly. BitGo, as the first crypto IPO of 2026, listed at $18 in January, saw a brief rise on its first day but then fell back, dropping to $7 before recovering to $11.9.
Specifically, the IPO timelines of several leading enterprises have noticeably slowed. Kraken's parent company, Payward, secretly submitted its S-1 filing in November 2025, originally aiming to advance in the first quarter of 2026 with a valuation target of $20 billion. However, on March 18 of this year, the company paused its plans due to 'challenging market conditions'. Joint CEO Arjun Sethi stated that although the valuation dropped to $13.3 billion in a recent funding round, the IPO filing remains valid as they await the optimal window.
Arjun Sethi
Ledger's pause came as quite a surprise. The company is well-known for its hardware wallets and enterprise-level infrastructure, and by January 2026, media had reported on its plans to hire an investment bank for its U.S. IPO, targeting a valuation of $4 billion. Insider sources indicated that due to unfavorable market conditions, Ledger decided to delay and did not initiate the formal registration process. A company spokesperson declined to comment but mentioned they might pivot towards private funding to maintain growth.
Notably, in March, Ledger appointed former Circle executive John Andrews as CFO and opened an office in New York to strengthen its U.S. presence. This expansion indicates that its business strategy remains unchanged, and the IPO pause is more due to external pressures.
Meanwhile, Consensys, the parent company of MetaMask, has also joined the wait-and-see approach. The company had previously engaged JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs as underwriters, planning to submit its S-1 filing around late February with an eye on a 2026 IPO, but due to market weakness, Consensys has postponed its IPO to as early as this fall.
The pause in IPOs among these crypto companies is certainly the result of multiple overlapping factors.
The stock price performance from the first wave of crypto IPOs in 2025 has intensified market caution regarding the IPO window in 2026.
This year, Circle's stock price plummeted from a high of $300 to below $50, while Bullish dropped from $118 to under $25. Even BitGo, the first crypto IPO of 2026, wasn't spared—after listing at $18 in January and experiencing a brief rebound, it subsequently fell to around $7.
The performance over the past year underscores that crypto stocks are easily favored by capital at the tail end of a bull market but struggle to withstand valuation resets during downturns, with traditional institutional investors demanding significantly higher risk premiums for 'cyclicality' risks.
In stark contrast to the 'quiet period' of crypto IPOs, the AI sector is experiencing a dual peak of IPOs and financing in 2026.
SpaceX has initiated preparations for its IPO, with a target valuation of up to $1.75 trillion to $2 trillion, making it one of the most anticipated tech IPOs globally.
OpenAI is valued at nearly $1 trillion and is in close talks with multiple investment banks regarding its IPO path; Anthropic's valuation has approached $900 billion and is also actively preparing IPO materials. The AI narrative, bolstered by the certainty of a 'productivity revolution', has attracted substantial long-term capital inflow, allowing AI-related IPOs to maintain a risk appetite far exceeding that of crypto assets, even amidst macro uncertainty.
In contrast, crypto companies are heavily reliant on Bitcoin prices and trading volumes, leading to greater revenue volatility and making it difficult to provide the 'exponential growth' certainty promised by AI companies. This disparity between sectors has amplified investors' cautious sentiment towards crypto IPOs, forcing crypto firms to accelerate their shift from 'storytelling' to 'cash flow and compliance'.
Additionally, crypto firms are adopting a more pragmatic strategy: while private funding has shrunk in scale, it still provides a buffer; some companies are choosing to optimize their product lines and expand stablecoin or institutional services, waiting for Bitcoin to stabilize in a higher range before pursuing an IPO when market conditions improve.
The implications of this phenomenon for the industry are worth pondering.
On one hand, it accelerated the survival of the fittest. Weaker projects face increased difficulty in securing funding, with resources concentrating on firms that are compliant and have solid infrastructures, like Ledger's institutional platform and Kraken's custody services. On the other hand, it highlights the crypto industry's shift from story-driven to performance-driven. Companies that truly endure through cycles are earning long-term trust by building resilient cash flows and enhancing transparency. However, in the short term, a tightening IPO window could lead to valuation resets and affect confidence and liquidity across the ecosystem.
Looking ahead, if Bitcoin returns to $90,000 or higher and regulatory frameworks are further established, the second wave of the IPO window may arrive in the second half of 2026.