NEW YORK –Figma, Inc., a design software company based in San Francisco, stunned Wall Street with its debut on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday. Shares soared by 250 percent, closing at $115.50, a huge leap from its IPO price of $33.
This debut pushed Figma’s valuation to almost $68 billion, outperforming all early predictions. The strong start has highlighted a wider issue: analysts have consistently underestimated the hunger for fast-growing tech shares in 2025.
Figma’s performance landed as US stock markets hit record highs in the early months of Donald Trump’s second presidential term, casting doubts on the reliability of recent analyst forecasts.
A Landmark IPO for Figma
Figma’s listing was one of the year’s most eagerly awaited in tech, especially after Adobe’s failed $20 billion takeover in 2023, halted by regulators in Europe and the UK. Figma’s initial target was a $16.4 billion valuation, with plans to price shares between $25 and $28.
Strong investor enthusiasm pushed the range up to $30-$32, with the final price set at $33. At the start of trading, shares jumped to $85 and climbed as high as $124.63 before a brief pause in trading due to high activity. Figma raised $1.2 billion, with 12.47 million shares sold by the company and another 24.46 million by major early investors such as Sequoia Capital and Kleiner Perkins.
Greg Martin of Rainmaker Securities pointed to the scale of investor interest, stating, “The 40-times oversubscription shows Figma is seen as a market leader, thanks to its AI features and collaborative tools.” With 13 million monthly users and clients like Netflix, Microsoft, and Airbnb, Figma has seen revenues grow by 46 percent year over year to reach $228.2 million in the first quarter of 2025. Net income for the quarter tripled to $44.9 million.
Wall Street’s Struggle With Tech
Figma’s runaway gains have put the spotlight on Wall Street’s difficulty in assessing technology stocks. Early calls from analysts suggested a modest first-day bump, with some questioning if Figma’s valuation was justified in light of Adobe’s $20 billion offer. Despite these doubts, the share price tripled, leaving market analysts rushing to explain why they missed the mark. Figma’s price-to-sales ratio shot ahead of established firms like Meta and Microsoft.
Market commentator Jim Cramer remarked that Figma’s valuation, about 60 times its expected revenue, could be a warning sign, similar to the late 1990s dot-com bubble. “Figma is a strong business, but this price isn’t based on the numbers,” Cramer said. “This can’t be the new standard.”
However, both institutional and retail investors brushed aside these warnings. Many on X joked about platforms like Robinhood only offering one share each to retail buyers due to the massive interest.
This year isn’t the first time the market has caught Wall Street off guard. Earlier in 2025, companies like Circle (a stablecoin issuer) and CoreWeave (an AI infrastructure firm) also saw their shares surge following their debuts. Predictions of a slow IPO market—linked to Trump’s new tariff policies—proved wrong as tech listings bounced back, spurred on by strong earnings at leading tech companies and growing excitement over artificial intelligence.
Record Markets During Trump’s Second Term
Figma’s listing has benefited from a general upward trend. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq reached new peaks within President Trump’s first six months back in office. After initial disruption caused by the reshuffled tariff policy in April, which paused some IPOs, markets climbed higher, thanks to solid company results and a positive view of deregulation.
Major firms like Microsoft and Amazon reported strong performance, fuelling greater confidence and driving the indices higher.
Tech shares, in particular, have performed better than many thought. Social media is full of posts mixing excitement and disbelief, with users pointing out that Figma’s shares move more like a cryptocurrency or AI stock, not a typical software company. Analysts who once predicted drawn-out volatility have since raised their outlook for tech IPOs set for the autumn.
Many analysts adopted a cautious stance after a period of economic uncertainty. High interest rates, ongoing geopolitical issues, and tariffs led to a more conservative outlook. Figma’s progress, inspired by AI-driven tools such as Figma Make, sets it apart in an industry that rewards new technology, but some analysts remained focused on risks. They flagged possible challenges from rivals and the threat of tariffs affecting the company’s large international business.
Figma’s Bold Financial Decisions
Derek Hernandez at PitchBook summed it up: “Analysts didn’t fully appreciate Figma’s unique appeal. Its AI features and appeal to non-designers make it stand out, and investors are betting on its lasting importance.” Figma’s bold financial decisions have also made an impression, including its $70 million investment in Bitwise’s bitcoin ETF, with another $30 million planned.
Figma’s strong debut has set the stage for other technology firms looking to go public, such as Databricks and Canva, which are both rumoured to be considering listings. CEO Dylan Field, now holding shares worth more than $6 billion, has said the focus remains on growth, with possible takeovers to help expand Figma’s reach. “We’re not slowing down,” Field told CNBC, adding that the public market offers big opportunities for the company’s users.
For investors, the big question is whether to chase the rapid gains or worry about prices moving too far from reality. As one retail trader joked online, “Who needs fundamentals when you have vibes?”
For now, the success of Figma’s listing marks a clear shift in the IPO market and serves as a direct challenge to cautious strategies on Wall Street. Whether this signals a new tech boom or another fleeting surge, the direction of the market is changing fast, and Figma is right at the centre.
