Bullish Expands to 20 US States Following Approval of NYDFS BitLicense

The crypto trading platform Bullish, aimed at institutions, has launched in 20 US states following the acquisition of a BitLicense and a money transmission license from the New York financial services regulator last month.

On its first day, Bullish initiated spot trading with two institutional clients: crypto infrastructure firm BitGo and crypto brokerage Nonco, it announced on Wednesday.

Among the largest states where Bullish is now operational are California, Florida, Arizona, Washington, DC, and New York, where the New York State Department of Financial Services granted Bullish’s BitLicense and money transmission license.

In New York, a BitLicense is mandatory for transmitting, custodying, or issuing “virtual currency,” and is deemed one of the hardest licenses to acquire.

This expansion aligns with heightened regulatory support from the Trump administration, which has been encouraging institutional adoption in the US.

In response to increasing demand, major industry players such as Binance and Coinbase, along with online payment service Stripe, have been introducing crypto-as-a-service and stablecoin offerings for institutional clients in the US.

Since its launch in late 2021, Bullish has processed approximately $1.5 trillion in trading volume worldwide, despite not having a presence in the largest market until now. It claims to rank among the top 10 crypto exchanges by Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) trading volume.

Using a central limit order book strategy combined with a deterministic automated market maker, Bullish provides substantial, stable liquidity and efficient trade execution, according to president Chris Tyrer.

Bullish aims to attract a diverse range of institutional clients

Bullish intends to target a variety of institutional players, including hedge funds, proprietary trading firms, market makers, fintech companies, and neobanks.