Key Takeaways
Bitget’s first pre-market IPO token, preSPAX, gained over 13 percent in its first 24 hours, trading at $756 after hitting a high of $770 and pointing to rising demand for pre-IPO derivatives on crypto exchanges.
The move positions Bitget alongside OKX, which recently announced plans for perpetual futures tracking private firms like OpenAI and SpaceX, according to a company statement. Crypto derivatives platforms Ventuals and PreStocks have seen combined trading activity surge more than threefold this year on similar products.
The preSPAX token allows traders to speculate on a private company's valuation before it goes public. This is part of a wider market trend, with platforms like OKX, Injective, and Bitget's own "IPO Prime" entering the segment. On platforms like Ventuals, speculative positioning has pushed the implied valuation of companies like Anthropic to as high as $1.6 trillion, far above private funding round valuations.
This surge in pre-IPO derivatives highlights a significant shift in crypto, repurposing its infrastructure to financialize private markets and meet retail demand for exposure to the AI boom. However, these instruments carry risks; they do not confer ownership, and target companies like OpenAI have previously distanced themselves from such offerings, creating potential regulatory and legitimacy challenges.
The enthusiasm for pre-IPO products on crypto venues is part of a larger narrative about tokenizing real-world assets. While offshore exchanges have dominated this activity, a recent deal by Kraken to acquire the licensed derivatives platform Bitnomial for up to $550 million signals a push to bring similar, regulated products to the US market. This could eventually provide US traders with onshore access to perpetual futures and other derivatives currently popular overseas.
These synthetic products offer a way for retail investors to gain exposure to high-profile, difficult-to-access companies. Platforms like AngelList and Robinhood have also created venture funds to provide similar exposure through more traditional, albeit still limited, channels. The key difference with the crypto offerings is the 24/7 trading, use of leverage, and real-time price discovery on a global scale.
Still, the model is not without friction. When Robinhood pursued a similar product for OpenAI equity last year, the AI firm stated it had no affiliation with the offering. Anthropic has also warned that special purpose vehicles (SPVs) used to create tokenized exposure may hold no legal value. Despite these warnings, trader demand continues to be robust, with data from Artemis Analytics showing hundreds of millions in trading volume on newer platforms.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
