Blockchain lending firm Figure made a strong debut on the US stock market on September 11, 2025, with its initial public offering (IPO) seeing a 44% surge in stock price. This impressive performance brought the company's market valuation to $6.5 billion by the end of its first trading day. Founded in 2018 by Mike Cagney, Figure has been at the forefront of integrating blockchain technology into capital markets, notably through blockchain-based consumer loan securitization and facilitating over $150 billion in on-chain transactions. Cagney highlighted the transformative potential of decentralized finance (DeFi) as a mainstream asset financing method, pointing to recent legislative developments that could expedite this transition. Figure's successful IPO underscores its role in advancing blockchain applications within capital markets, particularly in the real-world asset (RWA) sector.