Institutionally-focused crypto trading platform Bullish has launched in 20 US states after receiving a BitLicense and a money transmission license from the New York financial services regulator last month.
Bullish debuted spot trading with two institutional clients on its first day: crypto infrastructure firm BitGo and crypto brokerage Nonco, it said on Wednesday.
Some of the largest states where trading on Bullish is now accessible include California, Florida, Arizona, Washington, DC, and New York, where the New York State Department of Financial Services approved Bullish’s BitLicense and money transmission license.
A BitLicense is required to transmit, custody, or issue “virtual currency” in New York and is considered one of the most difficult licenses to obtain.
The move coincides with strong regulatory momentum from the Trump administration that has been pushing institutional adoption in the US.
To meet demand, several industry heavyweights, including Binance and Coinbase, along with online payments platform Stripe, have been rolling out crypto-as-a-service and stablecoin offerings to cater to institutional US clients.
Bullish has handled around $1.5 trillion worth of trading volume internationally since launching in late 2021, despite not having a presence in the world’s largest market until now. It claims to be one of the 10 largest crypto exchanges by Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) trading volume.
It combines a central limit order book strategy with a deterministic automated market maker to provide deep, stable liquidity and efficient trade execution, Bullish president Chris Tyrer said.
Bullish to target broad range of institutional clients
Bullish said it will aim to attract a range of institutional players, including hedge funds, proprietary trading firms, market makers, fintechs and neobanks.
Low fees for institutions and now advanced traders
The crypto trading platform is offering 0% maker fees for institutional accounts and 0% trading fees for advanced individuals in the 20 approved US states, with more to come soon, it said.
“Bullish was created for institutions, and now we’re proud to offer the same level of performance to serious traders across the US.”
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Other states where Bullish is now available include Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, Wyoming and the US territory of Puerto Rico.
Bullish shares fall on news
Despite the news, Bullish (BLSH) shares fell 4.4% to $60.80 during Wednesday’s trading hours, Google Finance data shows.
However, BLSH is still up over 60% from its $37 initial public offering in mid‑August, with its market cap now sitting at $9 billion.
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