Goldman Sachs and Barclays Lead Ledger’s $4B IPO as Wall Street Deepens Crypto Underwriting

WASHINGTON — Hardware security provider Ledger is preparing for a $4 billion initial public offering, with Goldman Sachs, Barclays, and Jefferies retained to lead its public market debut. The Paris-based company manufactures hardware wallets designed to store private cryptographic keys offline, capitalizing on rising demand for self-custody infrastructure.

Spot gold approached $5,000 per ounce, while silver moved closer to the $100 per ounce threshold, as traditional precious metals traded near historically elevated levels driven by macro hedge demand. Meanwhile, spot digital asset markets experienced modest pullbacks. Bitcoin declined 1% to trade at $89,100, Ethereum fell 2% to $2,925, Solana dropped 2% to $127, and XRP decreased 2% to $1.90.

The public offering initiative follows the stock market debut of crypto custody firm BitGo, which priced its initial public offering at $18 per share. BitGo’s stock experienced a brief surge during intraday trading on its opening day before settling slightly above its initial $18 offering price.

Investment banking giants are expanding their underwriting footprint in the digital asset sector alongside broader institutional adoption. In a newly published analysis on market structure, accounting firm PwC declared that institutional adoption of digital assets has crossed an irreversible threshold, noting that global regulatory frameworks are rapidly shifting from initial policy drafting toward active operational supervision and enforcement.

At the federal level, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent reaffirmed the Trump administration’s economic strategy to establish American leadership in the digital asset sector, explicitly reiterating support for the creation of a national strategic Bitcoin reserve. Kansas state lawmakers introduced legislation to establish a state-level Bitcoin Strategic Reserve, joining a growing number of U.S. jurisdictions evaluating sovereign digital asset holdings.

Legal disputes between the executive branch and major financial institutions continue to unfold. President Donald Trump filed a $5 billion lawsuit against JPMorgan Chase, alleging that the nation’s largest bank engaged in politically motivated “debanking” by improperly terminating account services and restricting financial access.

BlackRock Chief Executive Officer Larry Fink advocated for the adoption of a unified single-blockchain architecture for financial asset tokenization. Fink stated that a centralized, single-ledger framework is necessary to prevent market fragmentation, mitigate settlement corruption, and allow tokenized real-world assets to scale effectively across global financial systems.

Bucking the broader market downturn, select alternative tokens recorded substantial gains. LayerZero (ZRO) rallied 15%, Axie Infinity (AXS) advanced 10%, and Dash (DASH) rose 8%. Looking ahead, Ripple Chief Executive Officer Brad Garlinghouse projected that the broader digital asset market could achieve unprecedented record valuations by 2026, citing expanding institutional capital allocation and clear regulatory frameworks as primary operational drivers for long-term market growth.

Ledger is seeking a $4 billion valuation amid rising demand for self-custody infrastructure. Institutional leaders are pushing for systemic integration across financial markets as the capital market activity coincides with expanding legislative efforts to integrate digital assets into public sector finance.