Anchorage Digital’s $400M Fundraise Fuels IPO Ambitions
Anchorage Digital just secured a massive $400 million war chest—and Wall Street's IPO runway is now in sight.
The Institutional On-Ramp Gets a Turbocharge
Forget the crypto cowboys. This isn't about retail hype. Anchorage's playbook is laser-focused on the big leagues: sovereign wealth funds, asset managers, and corporations sitting on the digital asset sidelines. That $400 million isn't just capital; it's a statement of institutional intent. It funds the compliance armor, the security infrastructure, and the regulatory navigation needed to turn cautious whales into confident adopters.
Why an IPO? It's About More Than an Exit
Going public isn't just a liquidity event for early backers. It's the ultimate credibility play in traditional finance. A Nasdaq or NYSE listing acts as a giant stamp of approval—audited financials, quarterly scrutiny, the whole nine yards of corporate legitimacy. For institutions still wary of crypto's 'wild west' reputation, that stamp is priceless. It transforms Anchorage from a crypto company into a financial services firm that happens to specialize in digital assets.
The $400 Million Reality Check
Let's be clear: raising at this scale sets a sky-high valuation benchmark. The pressure to justify it with explosive growth is immense. The market will demand a clear path to profitability, not just user growth. Every dollar of that fundraise needs to work overtime—expanding custody solutions, building new prime services, and maybe even an acquisition or two to consolidate market share before the big debut.
The Final Word
Anchorage's move signals a maturation phase. The industry's pioneers are graduating from venture-backed startups to publicly accountable institutions. If they pull this off, it paves the way for a whole cohort of crypto-native firms to follow. Of course, timing is everything—launching an IPO requires a friendly market, both for tech stocks and crypto assets themselves. One cynical note for the finance traditionalists watching from the sidelines: nothing soothes institutional anxiety like the prospect of a traditional exit, even from the most disruptive of assets.
Anchorage’s Federal Bank Charter Gives It an Edge
Anchorage’s growing ambitions are tied closely to its regulatory standing. Its affiliate, Anchorage Digital Bank National Association, became the first federally chartered crypto bank in the United States in 2021.
That status has increasingly set Anchorage apart from rivals, particularly as Washington moves to formalize rules around stablecoins and digital asset infrastructure.
Following the passage of the GENIUS Act in July, Anchorage is positioning itself to play a central role in stablecoin issuance and related services.
Chief executive Nathan McCauley said in September that the firm plans to double the size of its stablecoin team over the next year, anticipating a surge in demand for dollar-backed digital tokens from banks, fintech firms and global institutions.
“2025 was our year of scale,” an Anchorage spokesperson told Bloomberg, pointing to a series of acquisitions, new partnerships and the launch of stablecoin issuance as key milestones.
ANCHORAGE DIGITAL SEEKS $200M FUNDING ROUND AS IPO PLANS TAKE SHAPE
Crypto custodian Anchorage Digital is seeking to raise $200 million in new funding as it moves forward with plans for a potential public listing.
The fundraising effort underscores continued institutional… pic.twitter.com/7Un0hfBw4a
One of the most notable partnerships involves Tether, with the two firms announcing plans last year to launch a U.S.-focused stablecoin known as USAT.
Beyond stablecoins, Anchorage has built a broad suite of services aimed at institutional clients, including custody, trading and staking for banks, hedge funds and venture capital firms.
The company has also expanded into wealth management, acquiring Securitize for Advisors and integrating token lifecycle management through Hedgey to deepen its reach across tokenized assets.
Anchorage is not new to large funding rounds. In late 2021, the firm raised $350 million in a round led by KKR & Co, with participation from Goldman Sachs, GIC and Apollo credit funds, valuing the company at more than $3 billion at the time.
Crypto Firms Line Up for IPOs as Anchorage Prepares Public Debut
Anchorage’s IPO ambitions come as other major crypto firms also line up for public listings.
Custody rival BitGo filed confidential IPO paperwork last year, while crypto exchange Kraken submitted its own filing in November and is targeting a debut in early 2026.
Bitpanda is also lining up for a Frankfurt stock market debut in the first half of 2026, putting one of Europe’s biggest retail crypto platforms on a path from bull market beneficiary to public market test.
Last year, tZero Group, a New York–based blockchain infrastructure firm focused on tokenized securities and real-world assets, announced that it is preparing to go public in 2026.
Before that, BitGo officially filed for an initial public offering, becoming the first dedicated crypto custodian to pursue a listing on a US stock exchange.
