Karla Barker 
Major funding round in the works
Anchorage Digital is reportedly looking to raise as much as $400 million in new funding. This comes as the company considers entering the U.S. public markets next year, according to a Bloomberg report from Friday.
I think this timing is interesting, especially considering the broader crypto market’s current state. The company was the first crypto firm to secure a federal banking charter in the United States, which gives it a unique position in the regulatory landscape.
Following the IPO trend
Analysts have been watching several crypto companies as potential candidates for public listings. Circle, Gemini, and Bullish all went public last year, and now Anchorage appears to be next in line. This isn’t happening in isolation though.
Just this week, BitGo—Anchorage’s main competitor in the custody space—filed its own IPO plans with the SEC. BitGo is targeting up to $201 million at a valuation around $1.9 billion. They’ve also received conditional approval to convert into a federal charter, which creates an interesting competitive dynamic.
The company’s position and backers
Anchorage offers a pretty comprehensive set of services. They handle custody, trading, and staking for hundreds of different digital assets. Their investor list reads like a who’s who of finance: Goldman Sachs, Andreessen Horowitz (often called a16z), KKR, GIC, and even Visa.
They last raised money in late 2021—a $350 million Series D round that valued the company at over $3 billion. That was a different market environment, of course. The crypto landscape has shifted significantly since then, with regulatory pressures increasing and market conditions changing.
What this means for the industry
This potential funding round and IPO timeline suggests that established crypto infrastructure companies are continuing to mature. They’re moving beyond the startup phase and into more traditional corporate structures. The federal banking charter gives Anchorage certain advantages, but it also comes with additional regulatory responsibilities.
It’s worth noting that custody services have become increasingly important as institutional interest in crypto grows. Large investors want secure, regulated places to store their digital assets, and companies like Anchorage and BitGo are positioning themselves to meet that demand.
The timing of this news, right after BitGo’s IPO filing, makes me wonder if we’re seeing a pattern. Perhaps these custody-focused firms feel the market is ready for more crypto infrastructure companies to go public. Or maybe they’re responding to competitive pressures—if one goes public, others might feel they need to follow to remain competitive.
Either way, it’s another sign that the crypto industry continues to evolve, with established players seeking traditional financing routes while navigating an increasingly complex regulatory environment.