Coinbase announces entry into prediction markets, stocks

COINBASE Global has announced its entry into prediction markets and equities trading.

The biggest crypto exchange in the US said on Wednesday it’s starting to roll out both services, which will be made available to all eligible users in the US in the coming weeks.

“Coinbase is now the best place to trade every asset, not just crypto,” chief executive officer Brian Armstrong said during the company’s product showcase.

The moves are part of Coinbase’s push to become an “everything app,” offering traders access to a broad range of assets and markets, and to keep pace with rivals that are also diversifying. Users will be able to buy stock with the USDC stablecoin, the company said in the presentation.

“This strategy should substantially widen the firm’s addressable markets (both retail and institutional), diversify its product/service range, while helping to mitigate potential future pricing pressure within retail crypto trading,” Deutsche Bank Research analysts wrote in a note. The company’s growth partly hinges on new services like prediction markets, they said.

Coinbase said it is offering prediction markets through Kalshi.

Prediction markets, which let people bet on outcomes of events such as sports games and elections, have exploded in popularity in the past year.

Robinhood Markets released prediction market products from Kalshi earlier this year.

Crypto exchange Gemini, co-founded by billionaire twin brothers Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, has received approval to roll out prediction markets. Crypto.com, another exchange, has partnered with the likes of Trump Media & Technology Group to help them also launch such products.

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Coinbase also announced several products for institutional clients, including the ability for companies to roll out their own branded stablecoins backed by a mix of USDC and other US dollar-backed stablecoins.

Another product, “Coinbase Tokenize,” will let institutions tokenise assets such as their own shares, it said, adding it will pave the way for tokenised stocks on Coinbase in the future.

“In time, we believe everything will be tokenised, and bringing stocks to Coinbase is an important milestone toward enabling tokenized stocks,” Coinbase said in a blogpost. “With tokenised stocks, you’ll be able to trade 24/7 anywhere in the world, use the stocks you own onchain, and even make instant payments.”

The company’s stock is down about 1.66 per cent for the year, while the broader crypto market has been in a sell-off since October. REUTERS

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