Crypto custody firm Copper in early talks for IPO as crypto 'plumbing' becomes new Wall Street favorite

Crypto custody firm Copper is in early talks about a public listing, according to three people with knowledge of the matter.

Goldman Sachs, Citi and Deutsche Bank are among the investment banks potentially involved, according to one source.

The decision on whether to pursue a listing will hinge on the company’s near-term revenue performance, a second person said, who spoke on condition of anonymity as the matter is private.

"As standard practice, Copper regularly assesses a range of potential financing options to support the business and our clients, but we are not planning an IPO,” a Copper spokesperson said in emailed comments.

However, the spokesperson declined to comment on whether the company is currently engaged in early talks about a potential listing.

Goldman Sachs, Citi and Deutsche Bank did not respond to requests for comment by publication time.

From trenches to IPO

Copper has joined the growing wave of digital asset firms eyeing public markets, becoming the latest crypto-native player to weigh an IPO. The move follows a high-profile debut by rival custody provider BitGo (BTGO), which listed on the New York Stock Exchange last week at $18 per share.

BitGo’s offering achieved an initial market valuation of approximately $2 billion, setting a fresh benchmark for the firms that provide plumbing or infrastructure for the financial industry. On its first day of trading, the stock surged 36% before closing the session at $18.49. Since that initial spike, the stock has faced significant downward pressure. The shares were trading around $12.50 at publication time, falling about 30% from the IPO price.

After years on the sidelines, the cryptocurrency industry finally broke through the IPO ceiling in 2025, transforming from a speculative frontier into a mainstay of public markets.

Driven by a surge in regulatory clarity and a pro-crypto stance from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), major firms, including Circle (CRCL), CoinDesk's owner Bullish (BLSH), and Gemini (GEMI), successfully debuted in the public market. According to Pitchbook data, at least 11 crypto IPOs raised a combined $14.6 billion in 2025, a massive leap from the mere $310 million raised in 2024.

While the year was defined by the arrival of these blockbuster listings, performance remained a tale of two markets. Institutional-grade infrastructure plays saw shares soar as much as 200% on their opening days, while others, like the Winklevoss-led Gemini, struggled under the weight of post-debut volatility, ending the year significantly below their offer prices.

If 2025 was dominated by listings tied to digital asset treasuries (DATs), 2026 is shaping up to look more like a year of financial infrastructure, White & Case partner Laura Katherine Mann told CoinDesk in an interview. She expects the next wave of IPO candidates to emphasize compliance maturity, recurring revenue and operational resilience, attributes more familiar to public-market investors.

Copper fits that profile. The company provides institutional-grade crypto infrastructure, including custody built on multi-party computation (MPC) technology, as well as settlement and prime brokerage services designed to reduce counterparty risk for banks and trading firms.

The custody firm appointed Tammy Weinrib as chief compliance officer and Bank Secrecy Act officer for the Americas in March last year, as part of its expansion in the region. Her appointment followed that of Amar Kuchinad as global CEO in October 2024.

Read more: Copper Hires Tammy Weinrib as Chief Compliance Officer for Americas as it Expands in U.S.