Consensys, the Ethereum development firm led by Joe Lubin, has pushed back its potential U.S. public offering until fall at the earliest due to poor market conditions, according to two people familiar with the situation.
The MetaMask wallet builder had reportedly engaged bankers from JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs last year to lead the process.
Consensys had been aiming to file a draft S-1 registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) around the end of February this year, according to a third person. A confidential filing is typically the first formal step in the IPO process.
Crypto markets turned sharply lower in February 2026 as investors pulled back from risk assets amid macroeconomic uncertainty, tariff concerns, slowing expectations for interest-rate cuts and heavy outflows from bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs), triggering a wave of leveraged liquidations across digital assets. Against that backdrop, Consensys’ decision to delay its IPO plans was hardly surprising.
A spokeswoman for Consensys said: “As a matter of policy, we don’t comment on market speculation.”
Improved regulatory clarity in the U.S. prompted several crypto firms to outline plans for going public this year. But a prolonged market downturn has seen large companies such as exchange giant Kraken and crypto wallet maker Ledger pause their IPO plans.
BitGo (BTGO), the only crypto-native company to go public in 2026, raised about $213 million in its January IPO, pricing shares above the marketed range at $18 and jumping more than 20% in its New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) debut.
But the rally quickly faded, highlighting volatile investor sentiment toward crypto listings, with the stock now trading about 36% below its IPO price.
In early 2022, Consensys raised a hefty $450 million Series D round, valuing the company at $7 billion.
Read more: Crypto wallet provider Ledger puts U.S. IPO plans on hold due to market conditions
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