Bitpanda, the Vienna-based cryptocurrency brokerage and trading platform, is advancing plans for an initial public offering (IPO) potentially as early as the first quarter of 2026, with the first half of the year as the target window. According to a Bloomberg report citing sources familiar with the matter, the company is focusing on the Frankfurt exchange as its preferred listing venue, a decision made after considering and moving away from a London listing due to liquidity concerns.
The platform, co-founded by Eric Demuth and Paul Klanschek, is reportedly seeking a valuation exceeding $4.7 billion (€4 billion). To arrange the sale, Bitpanda has enlisted major financial institutions including Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Citigroup, and Deutsche Bank. This move places Bitpanda among a growing list of crypto companies preparing to go public in 2026, following announcements like Kraken's planned Nasdaq listing.
Bitpanda's market strength is particularly notable in its home country of Austria, where it commands a dominant 59.6% share of users, significantly ahead of competitors Binance (21%) and Kraken (11%). The platform's success is attributed to its one-stop-shop approach, offering not only crypto trading but also traditional investments like stocks and precious metals, alongside portfolio management, tax tools, and automated capital gains tax withholding. It operates as a fully regulated entity within the EU and offers derivative trading with leverage up to 10x.
The company has undergone recent leadership changes in preparation for its public debut. Lukas Enzersdorfer-Konrad now serves as CEO, while co-founder Eric Demuth has moved to the role of Chairman of the Board for the Swiss holding company that owns Bitpanda Group. Bitpanda is backed by prominent investors, including Peter Thiel's Valar Ventures, and raised $260 million in a 2021 funding round that valued the company at $4.1 billion.
