Crypto In America Figure's $7.6 Billion IPO | How Mike Cagney Is Changing Capital Markets On The Blockchain
Oct 1, 2025
Mike Cagney, co-founder and CEO of Figure and former SoFi leader, discusses taking Figure public and applying blockchain to capital markets. He talks about tokenized lending, using public capital to bootstrap DeFi liquidity, navigating volatility in crypto-backed lending, and pushing for blockchain-native securities. Conversation also covers regulatory shifts in Washington and how macro trends may help the business.
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Go Public To Tell Your Blockchain Story
- Use public markets to tell the narrative of what a successful public blockchain company looks like.
- Mike also advises keeping balance-sheet optionality to move faster and seize greenfield opportunities.
Favor Retail Distribution In IPOs
- Prioritize broad retail distribution in an IPO to democratize ownership rather than favoring only institutions.
- Manage day-one stabilization to avoid extreme first-day pops that benefit flip strategies.
Seed Marketplaces With Balance‑Sheet Capital
- Use a public balance sheet to seed initial liquidity in new DeFi marketplaces and attract follow-on capital.
- Mike plans to deploy tens of millions as day-one capital to kickstart Democratize Prime pools.