US-listed cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase (COIN) is introducing stock trading and incorporating prediction markets, along with a host of other new products and assets that aim to cement the platform’s position as the “Everything Exchange,” the company announced during its System Update stream on Wednesday.
Coinbase said it is dramatically expanding the assets available for trading on its platform, including new cryptocurrencies, perpetual futures, stocks and prediction markets, starting with Kalshi and with more integrations to come later.
Offering users a Swiss Army Knife trading platform has become a competitive field of late. Some of Coinbase’s biggest cryptocurrency trading rivals, such as Robinhood, Kraken, and Gemini, have launched tokenized stock offerings for users outside the US and are also exploring prediction markets.
The main Coinbase app will provide “a simple interface for trading futures and criminals, the ability to trade all Solana assets as soon as they are created, primary token sales, and the global launch of the Base app,” according to the blog.
The regulatory environment in the US has evolved significantly in recent years to the point where the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has implicitly given the go-ahead to permanent trading of some tokenized stocks on blockchains.
Taking stock
There is no list of stocks that will be tradable at launch as it is still subject to change, said Coinbase head of commercial and consumer products Max Branzburg. However, there will be hundreds of top stocks based on market capitalization, trading volume and other metrics, with plans to add thousands of additional stocks and ETFs in the coming months, Branzburg said by email.
It is an integration that simplifies portfolio management, allowing Coinbase users to buy, sell and manage stocks and ETFs along with crypto portfolios (with USD or USDC), all within one Coinbase app and account, the exchange said in its blog post.
“Traders will get commission-free trading without the limitations of traditional market hours – trade their top stocks 24 hours a day, five days a week,” the post continues. “We plan to add thousands of additional shares in the coming months.”
Early next year, the plan is to expand perpetual stocks so that traders outside the U.S. can gain capital-efficient exposure to U.S. stocks 24/7 through the app, Coinbase said.
The move is facilitated by Coinbase Tokenize, the companies’ new end-to-end institutional platform for tokenizing real-world assets, which will drive retail access to tokenized stocks on the exchange.
When asked about the practicalities of the tokenization process and the regulatory status of equity tokens and their custody in relation to a Central Securities Depository (CSD), for example, Branzburg said via email:
“What we are really focused on is enabling RWA and tokenized assets. The mechanism for doing so is in progress, and we will have more specific details to share soon. Our regulatory rigor puts us in a unique position to lead as the space also matures.”
Prediction markets, criminals, Solana DEX
Beginning with the integration of $11 billion prediction market provider Kalashi, Coinbase users will be able to trade the outcomes of real-world events such as elections, sports, collectibles, and economic indicators, with event contract prices determined by the collective trading activity of market participants.
Coinbase also said it has simplified derivatives trading, allowing users to make larger moves with less initial capital and take advantage of more favorable tax benefits when trading crypto markets and commodities.
“We have over 30 futures and criminal contracts in the US across all asset classes, from cryptocurrencies to commodities to stock indices, with plans to expand to hundreds more contracts over time,” Branzburg said via email. “As of this week, we offer 15 perpetual-style futures contracts for cryptocurrencies, including BTC, ETH, SOL, XRP, and the following listed here.”
Rolling out in the coming weeks, Coinbase said it is expanding its decentralized exchange (DEX) trading integration to include access to Solana tokens. The leading exchange app integrates the popular Solana DEX aggregator, Jupiter, so that users can securely exchange tokens without having to leave the app.
Coinbase Wealth and Business Management
Additionally, Coinbase Business, a financial platform designed for startups and small businesses working with cryptocurrencies, will be available to all eligible businesses in the US and Singapore, the exchange posted.
“We are empowering users to send and receive payments globally with payment links and invoices, manage crypto assets through Coinbase Advanced, and automate financial workflows with access to Coinbase’s regulated infrastructure,” a blog post read.
The exchange is also pushing a new AI-based wealth management tool called Coinbase Advisor, which the exchange says bridges the gap between idea and execution. High-quality financial guidance is not a luxury product, but a standard for everyone, Coinbase said.
“Instead of manually matching trades, users can simply tell the AI their goals and questions: ‘Build me a portfolio,’ ‘What’s the latest market news and how does it impact me?’ – and get a personalized response with recommendations based on the products, data and tools available on Coinbase,” the post adds.
Coinbase’s popular Ethereum overlay blockchain, Base, is now global and officially available in over 140 countries. There was some speculation among analysts who had heard about the upcoming product announcement that the Base network updates could say something about the launch of a native blockchain token.
“We continue to explore the potential of a Base token, but have no updates to share at this time,” Branzburg said.
