Bullish Shares Jump as Citi, Canaccord Praise IPO Debut and BitLicense Win

Wall Street bank Citi (C) has raised its price target on Bullish (BLSH), the owner of CoinDesk, to $70 from $66 after the crypto exchange’s second quarter results came in slightly ahead of expectations. The long-anticipated NYDFS BitLicense approval removes a key regulatory overhang, strengthening investor confidence heading into FY 2026, Citi said. But the biggest surprise, according to the bank, was Bullish’s accelerating Subscription, Services and Other (SS&O) growth pipeline, an inflection it attributes in part to momentum from the firm’s recent IPO. Citi reiterated its buy rating, citing the firm's "highly attractive operating leverage." MEETING HIGH EXPECTATIONS Broker Canaccord said Bullish had delivered a strong debut as a public company, meeting high expectations in its first reported quarter post-IPO. In just a month since going public, the exchange has made meaningful strides, including securing the coveted BitLicense from the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS), showing solid quarter-to-date pricing trends in Q3, and continuing to scale its subscription services business, the report said. The broker noted that Bullish is also on track to launch options trading in…