IPO Issuance Hits $120 Billion at Year’s Midpoint but Goldman Says Euphoria Has Not Arrived Yet

Around 50 companies have gone public in the US so far in 2026, roughly double the number from the same point last year. By dollar value, issuance has already hit approximately $120 billion at the year’s midpoint matching the full-year record set in 2021. That sounds like euphoria. Goldman Sachs says it is not.

Ben Snider, Goldman’s chief US equity strategist, argued the current surge is “just a normal recovery” driven by large companies coming to market and strong demand for capital to fund AI development. The number that tells the real story is deal count the US has averaged about 100 IPOs per year over the past 25 years, close to today’s pace. During the dot-com peak in 1999, nearly 400 companies went public in a single year. In 2021 the number exceeded 250.

“Although the dollar volume is quite elevated, to me it still looks like we’re a far cry from that level of euphoric sentiment,” Snider said.

Crypto’s IPO Wave Has Stalled Out

While the broader market IPO revival is real, crypto companies are sitting it out. Kraken parent Payward, Ethereum developer Consensys, hardware wallet maker Ledger and asset manager Grayscale have all delayed or paused public listing plans this year. Volatile crypto markets, weaker trading volumes and disappointing post-listing performance from recent debuts have cooled investor appetite across the board.

The pullback is a sharp reversal from the optimism at the start of 2026, when the successful IPOs of Circle and Bullish had many in the industry expecting a full wave of crypto listings.

AI Is Pulling Capital Away From Crypto

Part of the problem is competition. SpaceX’s successful listing and a pipeline of high-profile AI and technology offerings have given institutional investors another home for growth capital — at exactly the moment crypto markets have struggled to regain momentum. Market participants say that rotation has weighed on tokens, crypto-linked equities and appetite for new crypto IPOs alike.

Goldman does flag some warning signs for the broader market — elevated valuations, strong investor confidence and AI dominating the investment narrative all echo previous market peaks. But without the deal volume to match, Snider says the bubble comparison does not hold up yet.