Industry Watch: A DePIN Empire Is Quietly Emerging on Solana

By: blockbeats|2025/04/09 13:15:02
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Original Title: "Industry Insight: A DePIN Empire Is Quietly Emerging on Solana"
Original Source: DePINone Labs

Abstract

This month, Solana's DePIN ecosystem welcomed two new major players. ROAM, based on shared WiFi, went live on March 6 on mainstream exchanges such as Bybit and Kucoin, reaching the fourth position in the DePIN track with its hardware devices achieving a network-wide first. Former Strategic Lead at the Solana Foundation, Austin Federa, led a $28 million funding round joined by Solana's co-founders and A-list VCs like Dragonfly and Multicoin to launch the DoubleZero distributed bandwidth project. This project aims to create a communication highway based on web2 infrastructure for web3, potentially addressing the network latency issues currently faced by web3.

Furthermore, as of March 14, 2025, the Solana-based DePIN ecosystem has seen significant growth, with a total market cap of over $25 billion. There are approximately 78 DePIN projects covering various subfields such as wireless communication (e.g., Helium), computing resources (e.g., Render Network), geolocation (e.g., Hivemapper), and cloud storage (e.g., GenesysGo SHDWDrive).

Solana, with its high throughput, low transaction costs, mature developer ecosystem, and a large user base, has become the preferred platform for DePIN projects. We are witnessing the emergence of a DePIN empire ecosystem nurtured on Solana.

1. Key Analysis of DePIN Track Major Projects

1. DoubleZero—Building a High-speed Highway for web3 on Solana

On March 10, amidst a weak overall crypto market performance, another DePIN dark horse project, DoubleZero Foundation, secured a massive $28 million investment from A-list VCs.

Who exactly is the DoubleZero Foundation, and how were they able to secure such a substantial investment in the midst of a market downturn?

I have summarized the key points as follows:

(1) The founding team has rich experience in blockchain projects and has been successful in the past. Furthermore, the founder has abundant resources within the industry and possesses a luxurious ecosystem.

The founder of DoubleZero, Austin Federa, previously served as the Head of Strategy at the Solana Foundation and can be considered a key driver of Solana's early ecosystem growth. During his time at the Solana Foundation, he was not only responsible for global market strategy but also directly involved in the implementation of several key projects, such as driving the integration of USDC and USDT on Solana, and even deeply involved in ecosystem partnerships during the FTX era.

Simultaneously, Austin Federa has a deep relationship with the Solana core team (including Anatoly Yakovenko and Raj Gokal). It is this relationship that allowed DoubleZero to receive early support from the Solana ecosystem and market recognition.

(2) The investment team is high-profile, with Solana founders co-investing and explicitly supporting Solana's DePIN strategic layout.

The following image shows DoubleZero's investment team. If you are familiar with the investment landscape in the crypto community, you will know the significant influence of Dragonfly and Multicoin. They are not only long-term supporters of the Solana ecosystem but have also played crucial roles in several key projects (e.g., Multicoin's early bet on Solana and Dragonfly's involvement in Serum).

Industry Watch: A DePIN Empire Is Quietly Emerging on Solana

Furthermore, in addition to top-tier VCs, the financial power within the Solana ecosystem also played a core role in this funding round. Solana Ventures and the co-founders of Solana Labs, Anatoly Yakovenko and Raj Gokal, also participated as angel investors.

From a somewhat irrational perspective, this is almost equivalent to declaring to others, "This is my own flesh and blood."

It is worth noting that DoubleZero's investment came just after the Solana Foundation announced its DePIN ecosystem strategy, being the first project to receive explicit investment support.

So we believe that, with Solana's official on-site support, Austin is not acting alone, but is entering the field with the entire Solana resource pool, a comprehensive tilt of funds, technology, and market resources. For the entire DeFi PIN track, this is undoubtedly an important signal: the Solana ecosystem is actively laying out the physical infrastructure network, and Double Zero may be the "vanguard" leading the charge.

(3) Leading Technical Solution, building a web3 track highway to make web3 projects run as smoothly as web2;

We know that the Web3 track is currently facing many issues, among which, at the infrastructure layer, due to public internet bandwidth limitations and issues such as non-deterministic routing, Web3 projects often cannot run as smoothly as Web2; and even if public bandwidth restrictions and non-deterministic routing issues are addressed, if the delay issue between validators is not resolved, then Web3 projects still cannot run as smoothly as Web2.

Double Zero was created to address these infrastructure layer issues in Web3.

From the architecture diagram above, we can see Double Zero's unique Two-Ring Architecture, where the Outer Ring connects to the public internet, using hardware (such as FPGA) for attack protection, signature verification, and transaction filtering; the Inner Ring then handles this filtered traffic through a dedicated bandwidth line and performs consensus building.

Firstly, the Outer Ring connects to the public internet, using hardware (such as FPGA) for attack protection, signature verification, and transaction filtering;

The benefit of this is that by pre-filtering incoming spam and duplicate transactions with dedicated hardware, the burden on validators is reduced, allowing the blockchain to share filtering resources without each validator needing to provide them separately.

Secondly, the Inner Ring processes this filtered traffic through a dedicated bandwidth line and performs consensus building. This can improve communication efficiency through explicit message routing, tracking, and priority management.

Regarding the specific technical processing flow, the information disclosed by the official is as follows:

(1) The Outer Ring, as the first line of defense, is mainly responsible for filtering out spam transactions, DDoS attacks, malicious contract invocations, and other invalid traffic. It uses an adaptive traffic filtering mechanism to real-time analyze transaction patterns using machine learning and heuristic rules, precisely identify and intercept malicious traffic, ensuring that only valid transactions can enter the blockchain mainnet.

At the same time, Outer Ring also relies on decentralized zero-permission fiber contributions, where independent contributors from the network provide physical infrastructure, further ensuring the authenticity and priority of data packets. All transactions must undergo basic validity checks in Outer Ring before entering the Inner Ring, reducing the entry of invalid transactions into the core network and improving overall processing efficiency.

(2) Transactions entering the Inner Ring have undergone strict screening, allowing it to focus on efficient transaction processing. The Inner Ring adopts a high-performance architecture similar to Solana, supporting ultra-high TPS (transactions per second), ensuring extremely short transaction confirmation times to meet the demand for a large number of transactions.

To further enhance network fluidity, Double Zero also adopts a stateless verification model. This lightweight transaction processing method, compared to the traditional state storage model of blockchain, makes the entire network run more smoothly and efficiently.

2. Roam - Web3 Version of Starchain Built on Solana

On March 6, Roam, another decentralized wireless network project built on the Solana public chain, was listed on Kucoin and Bybit, with a circulating market value of over $60 million. In the DePIN track, Solana has gained another strong contender.

(1) What is the Roam project?

ROAM is a decentralized wireless network project based on the Solana blockchain, aiming to provide seamless and secure global WiFi and eSIM connections, with the goal of building a global open wireless network. It achieves automatic network switching and secure connections through blockchain technology, supporting individuals, smart devices, and AI agents.

Currently, with over 2.3 million users and 2 million WiFi nodes covering 190+ countries, it ranks high in the DePIN field.

The $ROAM token has a total supply of 1 billion, with 600 million allocated for mining and community activities. Users can earn tokens by providing WiFi or validating the network.

According to the 2024 Messari report, ROAM ranks fourth in DePIN projects with over 1 million active nodes and first in hardware node count. Competitors include Helium and DIMO, but ROAM's global coverage and user base provide it with a competitive advantage.

If we say Musk's Starlink has built a space-based communication system, I would like to refer to Roam as the ground-based communication network's web3 version of the Starlink system.

(2) Technological Advantages

ROAM utilizes OpenRoaming™ WiFi and eSIM technology, allowing users to provide WiFi access or share network performance data. Meanwhile, ROAM employs decentralized identities (DID) and verifiable credentials (VC) to ensure that users do not risk data leakage while sharing WiFi or using WiFi, ensuring privacy and security.

The specific architecture and functions of the technology are as follows:

· OpenRoaming™ Wi-Fi: Following the Wireless Broadband Alliance (WBA) standard, it supports users in seamless switching between different WiFi networks, ensuring continuous connectivity.

· eSIM Service: Providing smart eSIM services in over 160 countries, allowing users to access data networks without a traditional SIM card.

· Blockchain Incentive Mechanism: Utilizing the Proof-of-Service mining algorithm, users earn ROAM tokens by providing WiFi services or validating network performance.

· Decentralized Identity (DID) and Verifiable Credentials (VC): Using blockchain technology to protect user privacy, eliminate reliance on centralized validators, and enhance security and decentralization.

In this system design, OpenRoaming™ Wi-Fi addresses the linking protocol issue of communication systems in different countries and regions, eSIM addresses the lack of SIM services in many regions, particularly helping create communication conditions in some impoverished areas, while DID and VC technologies solve data security and privacy issues during communication. By introducing a web3 economic system, it can quickly stimulate early network deployment challenges.

The reason why ROAM has rapidly grown since its redesign 24 years ago, becoming a leading player in the DePIN track, is not only due to the synergetic effect of the Solana ecosystem but also its own technological and track accumulation.

(3) Operational Advantages

The project team has been deeply involved in the web3 field for many years, well-versed in web3 project strategies. Through web3 mechanisms such as staking and referral rewards, they quickly accumulated network effects and onboarded early users.

ROAM encourages users to participate in network building through a mobile app, such as adding WiFi nodes, daily check-ins, or inviting friends, to earn Roam Points. These points can be redeemed for ROAM tokens after the Token Generation Event (TGE).

Upon researching the project team's information, it is evident that although the ROAM project started on April 2, 2024, its previous name was MetaBlox. From the data, we discovered that MetaBlox was established as early as 2018 but remained dormant for several years until it rebranded to ROAM in 2024 and migrated to the Solana mainnet.

From this, it can be seen that the success of any project is the result of years of dedication to the field. Therefore, even in the current market downturn, a good project can still withstand the test of time and bloom when the time is right.

In summary, ROAM offers a compelling wireless network sharing project and has already established a strong network effect. With a current circulating market capitalization of only around $15 million, it is far behind Grass's $360 million. If we see more users join the ROAM network in the future, we may witness the project's takeoff and rise in the next bull market.

II. Ecosystem Observation

As of March 14, 2025, we have observed significant development in the DePIN ecosystem based on Solana, with a market valuation exceeding $25 billion. This surpasses the scale of other DePIN projects' ecosystems, indicating the emergence of a DePIN empire ecosystem on Solana.

According to public data, there are approximately 78 DePIN projects on Solana (data referenced from platforms such as Messari and DePIN Scan up to 2024), covering various subfields such as wireless communication (e.g., Helium), computing resources (e.g., Render Network), geolocation (e.g., Hivemapper), cloud storage (e.g., GenesysGo SHDWDrive), among others. Solana's high throughput (theoretically up to 50,000 TPS), low transaction costs (about $0.00025 per transaction), and mature developer ecosystem make it the preferred platform for DePIN projects.

Key DePIN projects currently on Solana include:

· Helium: The world's largest decentralized wireless network, which, after migrating to Solana, has deployed nearly 1 million hotspots covering 192 countries, providing IoT and 5G services.

· Render Network: A decentralized GPU computing platform that migrated from Ethereum to Solana, processing tens of millions of image frames to support AI and media rendering.

· Hivemapper: A decentralized digital mapping network challenging Google Maps using user-contributed dashcam data, with coverage in multiple cities.

· GenesysGo SHDWDrive: A decentralized cloud storage solution aiming to fill the storage gap in the Solana ecosystem.

· Dabba Network (Emerging Project): Focused on the Indian broadband market, aiming to increase network coverage in a decentralized manner.

The total market capitalization of Solana's DePIN projects reached approximately $25.6 billion in June 2024 (DePIN Scan data), which may vary in 2025 due to market fluctuations and project growth. Top projects such as Helium, Render, and Hivemapper have fully diluted valuations (FDV) exceeding $10 billion.

Comparison Summary of Solana's DePIN Ecosystem with Other Public Chains

From the table above, it is evident that Solana has a significant advantage in the DePIN track compared to other public chains in the DePIN track:

In terms of technical performance and cost advantage, Solana's high performance and low cost, especially its low Gas fees compared to chains like Ethereum, are particularly friendly to DePIN projects that require frequent transactions (such as micro-payment incentives); Proof of History (PoH) and parallel processing capabilities enable Solana to handle large amounts of real-time data for DePIN projects (such as IoT device communication, map data uploads), allowing DePIN projects to operate smoothly and provide a comfortable user experience similar to web2 projects.

In the public blockchain ecosystem, the Solana Foundation actively promotes the development of the DePIN project through funding and hackathons (such as collaboration with Multicoin Capital). Recently, the Solana DePIN Special Fund was established specifically to help Solana nurture more high-quality projects, with the first project on it, DoubleZero, being the most well-known one at present.

Therefore, we optimistically believe that Solana is not merely a Memecoin public chain. Its journey to today is definitely not solely due to its MEME effect, but rather its strong ecosystem foundation, technical advocacy, and robust support for the community and projects. We optimistically anticipate that the next DePIN empire's ecosystem may emerge on Solana.

III. Other Recent Important Events in the DePIN Track

1. On February 1, IoTeX, a DePIN and AI fully chain-compatible modular infrastructure, announced its 2025 development roadmap focusing on the DePIN + AI ecosystem:

Physical Perception AI Empowered by DePIN

IoTeX has launched the open-source framework QuickSilver, which combines Large Language Models (LLMs) with DePIN network data to create advanced AI applications. In the first quarter, IoTeX plans to launch the QuickSilver testnet, enabling developers to utilize QuickSilver to bridge the existing DePIN world with the emerging AI world, creating a wave of new "perceptual AI applications."

Establishing a DePIN + AI Strategic Reserve

IoTeX will create an initial BTC-based DePIN + AI asset strategic reserve for IOTX holders. This reserve will serve as a "store of value" for long-term quality tokens and assets, safeguarding the interests of IOTX holders.

Community First

A comprehensive community empowerment plan, combined with a DAO-based governance model, allows the community to directly participate in IoTeX's development.

2. On March 3, during the ETHDenver 2025 event, the DePIN + AI R3al World Summit, Blockchain Association's Policy Director Salah and IoTeX's Ecosystem Lead Larry engaged in forward-looking discussions on cryptocurrency and DePIN + AI regulatory frameworks, sparking industry-wide contemplation on the fusion of technology and policy trends.

Salah emphasized: "The current US regulatory agencies are accelerating the exploration of how to incorporate innovative technologies that bridge the physical and digital worlds, such as DePIN, into the national strategic framework. The future regulatory framework must balance technological innovation with the public interest, and the transparency of DePIN and the explainability of AI may become key to solving regulatory challenges."

Larry shared IoTeX's practical experience: "From compliance collaborations with Grayscale and Coinbase to serving as Co-Chair of the Blockchain Association's DePIN Working Group, we have always been centered on 'verifiable physical data,' driving the alignment of DePIN + AI with real-world economic needs."

3. On March 6, the Solana Foundation and the Solana Chinese community Solar will hold a DePIN Day event on March 8 in Shenzhen, the hardware capital.

Solana's emerging DePIN projects such as Cudis, Starpower, Geodnet, Roam, Aethir, Gradient, and DeGlass will attend and conduct on-site showcases and sharing.

IV. Recent Industry Funding Events

1. On February 27, the Solana ecosystem DePIN project Shaga completed a $4 million seed round of financing, led by IOSG Ventures, with participation from Everyrealm, Amber Group, and multiple angel investors.

Shaga aims to reshape the gaming industry—break through hardware limitations, bring ultra-low latency, and make high-performance gaming accessible to all.

BlockBeats previously reported that on June 25, 2024, Shaga completed a $1 million angel round of financing, led by Arca, with participation from MARIN DIGITAL VENTURES, Skybridge20 Ventures, Aurory, Quotient Ventures, as well as angel investors such as Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko and Helium founder Amir Haleem.

2. On February 25, the DePIN project Geodnet completed an $8 million token financing, led by Multicoin.

Geodnet provides financial incentives for startups to encourage ordinary people to host physical infrastructure. Due to the strong demand for Geodnet's services, the project's token (and its incentive mechanism) has more than doubled in value in the past 12 months.

In April of last year, the GEODNET Foundation announced the completion of over $2 million in strategic funding, with participation from CoinFund, Pantera Capital, VanEck, and Santiago R. Santos. The additional funds raised will support the foundation in achieving its short-term goals, including decentralization and developer usability.

On February 5, DePIN Game Infrastructure Platform Beamable completed a $13.5 million Series A funding round, led by Bitkraft Ventures.

The Beamable Network aims to transform the way game backend infrastructure is built and operated.

The DoubleZero Foundation announced a $28 million investment led by Dragonfly and Multicoin Capital.

Double Zero is a project based on the DePIN track, allowing anyone to contribute independently provisioned fiber-optic links without permission. This is essentially laying the "information superhighway" for the Web3 world. The project's key feature lies in its hardware-driven nature, targeting the infrastructure layer directly. DoubleZero's goal is simple: to increase bandwidth and reduce latency for all high-performance blockchains.

Original Article Link

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Never Underestimate the Significance of the US Stablecoin 'Infrastructure Bill'

Original Title: "Never Underestimate the Significance of the US Stablecoin 'Genius Act'"Original Author: 0xTodd, Partner at Nothing Research


If the US stablecoin bill, the "GENIUS Act," passes smoothly this time, its significance will be tremendous. I even think it's significant enough to enter the top five in Crypto history.



Although abbreviated as the GENIUS Act, which translates directly to the Genius Act, it is actually the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins, which translates to "Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Dollar Stablecoins."


The proposal is lengthy, with several key points summarized for everyone:


· Mandatory 1:1 Full Asset Backing: Assets include cash, demand deposits, and short-term US Treasuries. At the same time, misappropriation and rehypothecation are strictly prohibited.


· High-Frequency Disclosure: Reserve reports must be published at least monthly, introducing external audits.


· Licensing Requirement: Once the circulating market cap of the issuer's stablecoin exceeds $100 billion, it must transition into the federal regulatory system within a specified timeframe, adopting banking-grade regulation.


· Introduction of Custody: The custodian of the stablecoin and its reserve assets must be a regulated qualified financial institution.


· Clear Definition as a Payment Medium: The bill explicitly defines stablecoin as a new type of payment medium, primarily regulated by the banking regulatory system, rather than restricted by the securities or commodities regulatory system.


· Embracing Existing Stablecoins: A maximum 18-month grace period after the bill's enactment, aimed at encouraging existing stablecoin issuers (such as USDT, USDC, etc.) to promptly obtain licenses or become compliant.


After finishing the main content, let's talk about the significance of this matter with an excited heart.


Over the years, when others asked, "After working in the Crypto industry for 16 years, what application have you created?"


In the future, you can confidently tell others—Stablecoins.


First, Clearing Concerns is a Prerequisite


Some people have held opposing views. In the past, people's impression of stablecoins was that they were an opaque black box. Every few months, there would be FUD — whether Tether's assets were frozen or Circle had a significant black hole deficit.


In fact, if you think about it, Tether easily rakes in billions of dollars a year just from the interest on those underlying government bonds. Circle, slightly less, also made a $1.7 billion profit last year.


They basically made money while standing there. From a motivational standpoint, they have no malicious intentions. In fact, they are the most eager for compliance.


Now, this opaque black box will become a transparent white box.


In the past, the only complaint was that Tether's funds might have been frozen by the United States. Now, they will be directly placed into U.S. compliant custodial institutions, with high-frequency disclosures, so you can rest assured.


【No need to worry about a rug pull】 is such a huge advantage—I think especially all Crypto people understand this.


Second, Mastering the Standard is Very Important


Stablecoins were once almost on the verge of being overtaken by CBDCs. In any country, if a central bank digital currency really exists, it is highly likely not built on a blockchain, at most it is built on some internal central bank consortium chain, which to be honest, is meaningless.


When CBDCs were at their peak, that was the most dangerous time for stablecoins.


If CBDCs had become a reality back then, stablecoins today would have been relentlessly suppressed into a dark corner, and blockchain would only be able to play a minimal role.


The remaining half-dead stablecoins would even have to learn the standards of central bank digital currencies, completely relinquishing their standard-setting power.


And now, stablecoins have won (or are about to).


Instead, everyone should learn the 【Blockchain + Token】 standard.


Nowadays, many blockchains actually have no meaningful applications on top, only stablecoin transfers. For example, with Aptos, the only scenario I use Aptos for is transfers between Binance and OKX.


And now, stablecoins will be legislated, what does that mean?


That's right, blockchain will become the only standard.


In the future, every stablecoin user will be the first to learn how to use a wallet.


As an aside, I actually think Ethereum's concerted push for EIP-7702 is quite forward-thinking. While other chains are all about memes, thank you Ethereum for sticking to account abstraction.



EIP-7702 is about Account Abstraction, which can support, for example:


· Social Account Registration Wallet

· Paying GAS with Native Coin

· And more


This paves the way for future new users to heavily use stablecoins, solving the last-mile problem.


Third, Deposit Enters a New Era


Furthermore, once stablecoins receive legislative support, deposits and withdrawals will become even easier.


Let's imagine a scenario: previously, hindered by the gray nature of stablecoins, but after the bill passes, many traditional brokerages can support stablecoins themselves. The money from a US stock investor can be converted into stablecoins in minutes and instantly deposited into Coinbase. Believe it or not.



Let's imagine another scenario: if the brilliant bill smoothly passes through the House of Representatives, next, you will see:


Due to the extremely lucrative nature of this trading, existing stablecoin leaders and newly entering traditional giants will crazily start promoting their stablecoin products.


And an outsider, due to these promotions, will start using stablecoins. And then one day, after finding out that the wallet account has been created, will explore Bitcoin inside. Is mining Bitcoin difficult?


Stablecoins are a huge Trojan horse. The moment you start using stablecoins, you unwittingly step half a foot into the Crypto world.


Fourth, Conclusion


As a large reservoir for digesting US debt, although stablecoins cannot directly absorb debt, they at least provide ammunition for the US debt secondary market. These functions are quite important, and slowly, stablecoins are becoming a part of the US debt market's body. Therefore, once the US legislation is passed and experiences the benefits, there is no turning back.


And, we are also confident that stablecoins are indeed one of the great innovations in our industry. People who have used stablecoins will find it hard to return to the traditional cash-banking system.


Once the bill is passed, users can't go back. In the future, concerns are about to be resolved, standards will be mastered, and the era of large deposits seems to be on the horizon.


Original Article Link

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$COIN Joins S&P 500, but Coinbase Isn't Celebrating

On May 13, S&P Dow Jones Indices announced that Coinbase would officially replace Discover Financial Services in the S&P 500 on May 19. While other companies like Block and MicroStrategy, closely tied to Bitcoin, were already part of the S&P 500, Coinbase became the first cryptocurrency exchange whose primary business is in the index. This also signifies that cryptocurrency is gradually moving from the fringes to the mainstream in the U.S.



On the day of the announcement, Coinbase's stock price surged by 23%, surpassing the $250 mark. However, just 3 days later, Coinbase was hit by two consecutive events: a hack where employees were bribed to steal customer data and a demand for a $20 million ransom, and an investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) into the authenticity of its claim of having over 100 million "verified users" in its securities filings and marketing materials. These two events acted as mini-bombs, and at the time of writing, Coinbase's stock had already dropped by over 7.3%.


Coincidentally, Discover Financial Services, being replaced by Coinbase, can also be considered the "Coinbase" of the previous payment era. Discover is a U.S.-based digital banking and payment services company headquartered in Illinois, founded in 1960. Its payment network, Discover Network, is the fourth largest payment network apart from Visa, Mastercard, and American Express.


In April, after the approval of the acquisition of Discover by the sixth-largest U.S. bank, Capital One, this well-established digital banking company of over 60 years smoothly handed over its S&P 500 "seat" to this emerging cryptocurrency "bank." This unexpected coincidence also portrayed the handover between the new and old eras in Coinbase's entry into the S&P 500, resembling a relay race scene. However, this relay baton also brought Coinbase's accumulated "external troubles and internal strife" to a tipping point.


Side Effects of ETFs


Over the past decade, cryptocurrency exchanges have been the most stable "profit machines." They play a role in providing liquidity to the entire industry and rely on trading fees to sustain their operations. However, with the comprehensive rollout of ETF products in the U.S. market, this profit model is facing unprecedented challenges. As the leader in the "American stack," with over 80% of its business coming from the U.S., Coinbase is most affected by this.



Starting from the approval of Bitcoin and Ethereum spot ETFs, traditional financial capital has significantly onboarded users and funds that originally belonged to exchanges in a more cost-effective, compliant, and transparent manner. The transaction fee revenue of cryptocurrency exchanges has started to decline, and this trend may further intensify in the coming months.


According to Coinbase's 2024 Q4 financial report, the platform's total trading revenue was $417 million, a 45% year-on-year decrease. The contribution of BTC and ETH's trading revenue dropped from 65% in the same period last year to less than 50%.


This decline is not a result of a decrease in market enthusiasm. In fact, since the approval of the Bitcoin ETF in January 2024, the inflow of BTC into the U.S. market has continued to reach new highs, with asset management giants like BlackRock and Fidelity rapidly expanding their management scale. Data shows that BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin ETF (IBIT) alone has surpassed $17 billion in assets under management. As of mid-May 2025, the cumulative net inflow of 11 major institutional Bitcoin spot ETFs on the market has exceeded $41.5 billion, with a total net asset value of $1214.69 billion, accounting for approximately 5.91% of the total Bitcoin market capitalization.


Chart showing the trend of net outflows for Grayscale among the 11 institutions


Institutional investors and some retail investors are shifting towards ETF products, partly due to compliance and tax considerations. On one hand, ETFs have much lower trading costs compared to cryptocurrency exchanges. While Coinbase's spot trading fee rate varies annually in a tiered manner but averages around 1.49%, for example, the management fee for IBIT ETF is only 0.25%, and the majority of ETF institution fees fluctuate around 0.15% to 0.25%.



In other words, the more rational users are, the more likely they are to move from exchanges to ETF products, especially for investors aiming for long-term holdings.


According to multiple sources, several institutions, including VanEck and Grayscale, have submitted applications to the SEC for a Solana (SOL) ETF, with some institutions also planning to submit an XRP ETF proposal. Once approved, this may trigger a new round of fund migration. According to a report submitted by Coinbase to the SEC, as of April, the platform's trading revenue from XRP and Solana accounted for 18% and 10%, nearly one-third of the platform's fee revenue.



However, the Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs passed in 2024 also reduced the fees for these two tokens on Coinbase from 30% and 15% to 26% and 10%, respectively. If the SOL and XRP ETFs are approved, it will further undermine the core fee revenue of exchanges like Coinbase.


The expansion of ETF products is gradually weakening the financial intermediary status of cryptocurrency exchanges. From their original roles as matchmakers and clearers to now gradually becoming mere "on-ramps and off-ramps" for funds, exchanges are seeing their marginal value squeezed by ETFs.


Robinhood Takes a Stand, Traditional Brokerages Join the Fray


On May 12, 2025, SEC Chairman Paul S. Atkins gave a keynote speech at the Tokenization and Cryptocurrency Working Group roundtable. The theme of his speech revolved around "It is a new day at the SEC," where he indicated that the SEC would not approach enforcement and regulation the same way as before but would instead pave the way for cryptocurrency assets in the U.S. market.



With signs of cryptocurrency compliance such as the SEC's "NEW DAY" declaration, an increasing number of traditional brokerages are attempting to enter the cryptocurrency industry. One of the most representative cases is the well-known U.S. brokerage Robinhood, which began expanding its crypto business in 2018. By the time of its IPO in 2021, Robinhood's crypto business revenue accounted for over 50% of the company, with a significant boost from the Dogecoin "moonshot" promoted by Musk.


In Q1 2025 earnings report, Robinhood showcased strong growth, especially in revenue from cryptocurrency and options trading. Fueled by Trump's Memecoin, cryptocurrency-related revenue reached $250 million, nearly doubling year-over-year. Consequently, Robinhood Gold subscription users reached 3.5 million, a 90% increase from the previous year, with the rapid growth of Robinhood Gold providing the company with a stable source of income.



Meanwhile, RobinHood is actively pursuing acquisitions in the cryptocurrency space. In 2024, it announced a $2 billion acquisition of the long-standing European cryptocurrency exchange Bitstamp. Additionally, Canada's largest cryptocurrency CEX, WonderFi, which recently went public on the Toronto Stock Exchange, also announced its integration with RobinHood Crypto. After obtaining virtual asset licenses in the UK, Canada, Singapore, and other markets, RobinHood has taken a proactive approach in the compliant cryptocurrency trading market.



Furthermore, an increasing number of brokerage firms are exploring the same path. Futu Securities, Tiger Brokers, and others are also dipping their toes into cryptocurrency trading, with some having applied for or obtained the VA license from the Hong Kong SFC. Although their user bases are currently small, traditional brokerages have a natural advantage in user trust, regulatory licenses, and low fee structures. This could pose a threat to native cryptocurrency platforms in the future.



User Data Breach: Is Coinbase Still Secure?


In April 2025, security researchers discovered that some Coinbase user data was leaked on the dark web. While the platform initially responded by attributing it to a "technical misinformation," it still raised concerns among users regarding its security and privacy protection. Just two days before Dow Jones Indexes announced Coinbase's addition to the S&P 500 Index, on May 11, 2025, Coinbase received an email from an unknown threat actor claiming to have obtained customer account information and internal documents, demanding a $20 million ransom to keep the data private. Subsequent investigations confirmed the data breach.


Cybercriminals obtained the data by bribing overseas customer service agents and support staff, mainly in "non-U.S. regions such as India." These agents abused their access to Coinbase's internal customer support system and stole customer data. As early as February this year, blockchain detective ZachXBT revealed on X platform that between December 2024 and January 2025, Coinbase users lost over $65 million to social engineering scams, with the actual amount potentially higher.


Among the victims was a well-known figure, 67-year-old Ed Suman, an established artist in the art world for nearly two decades, having been involved in the creation of artworks such as Jeff Koons' "Balloon Dog" sculpture. Earlier this year, he fell victim to an impersonation scam involving fake Coinbase customer support, resulting in a loss of over $2 million in cryptocurrency. ZachXBT critiqued Coinbase for its inadequate handling of such scams, noting that other major exchanges have not faced similar issues and recommending Coinbase to enhance its security measures.


Amidst a series of ongoing social engineering incidents, although there has not been any impact on user assets at the technical level so far, it has raised concerns among many retail and institutional investors. Especially institutions holding massive assets on Coinbase. Just considering the U.S. BTC ETF institutions, as of mid-May 2025, they collectively hold nearly 840,000 BTC, and 75% of these are custodied by Coinbase. If we price BTC at $100,000, this amount reaches a staggering $63 billion, which is equivalent to the nominal GDP of two Iceland in the year 2024.


Visualization: ChatGPT, Source: Farside


In addition, Coinbase Custody also serves over 300 institutional clients, including hedge funds, family offices, pension funds, and endowments. As of the Q1 2025 financial report, Coinbase's total assets under management (including institutional and retail clients) reached $404 billion. The specific amount of institutional custodied assets was not explicitly disclosed in the latest report, but it should still be over 50% based on the Q4 2024 report.


Visualization: ChatGPT


Once this security barrier is breached, not only could the rate of user attrition far exceed expectations, but more importantly, institutional trust in it would undermine the foundation of its business. Therefore, after a hacking event, Coinbase's stock price plummeted significantly.


CEXs are All in Self-Rescue Mode


Facing a decline in spot trading fee revenue, Coinbase is also accelerating its transformation, attempting to find growth opportunities in derivatives and emerging assets. Coinbase acquired a stake in the options platform Deribit at the end of 2024 and announced the official launch of perpetual contract products in 2025. This acquisition fills in Coinbase's gap in options trading and its relatively small global market share.



Deribit has a strong presence in non-U.S. markets, especially in Asia and Europe. The acquisition has enabled Coinbase to gain a dominant position in bitcoin and ethereum options trading on Deribit, accounting for approximately 80% of the global options trading volume, with daily trading volume remaining above $2 billion.


Meanwhile, 80-90% of Deribit's customer base consists of institutional investors, with their professionalism and liquidity in the Bitcoin and Ethereum options market highly favored by institutions. Coinbase's compliance advantage, coupled with its already robust institutional ecosystem, makes it even more suitable. By using institutions as an entry point, it can face the squeeze from giants like Binance and OKX in the derivatives market.



Facing a similar dilemma is Kraken, which is attempting to replicate Binance Futures' model in non-U.S. markets. Since the derivatives market relies more on professional users, fee rates are relatively higher and stickiness is stronger, making it a significant source of revenue for exchanges. In the first half of 2025, Kraken completed the acquisition of TradeStation Crypto and a futures exchange, aiming to build a complete derivatives trading ecosystem to hedge the risk of declining spot transaction fee income.


With the surge of Memecoin in 2024, Binance, OKX, and various CEX platforms began massively listing small-market-cap, highly volatile tokens to activate active trading users. Due to the wealth effect and trading activity of Memecoins, Coinbase was also forced to join the battle, successively listing popular tokens from the Solana ecosystem such as BOOK OF MEME and Dogwifhat. Although these coins are controversial, they are frequently traded, with fee rates several times higher than mainstream coins, serving as a "blood-boosting" method for spot trading.


However, due to its status as a publicly traded company, this practice is a riskier endeavor for Coinbase. Even in the current crypto-friendly environment, the SEC is still investigating whether tokens like SOL, ADA, and SAND constitute securities.


In addition to the forced transformation strategies carried out by the aforementioned CEXs, they are also starting to lay out RWAs and the most talked-about stablecoin payment fields, such as the PYUSD launched through a collaboration between Coinbase and Paypal, Coinbase's support for the Euro stablecoin EURC by Circle that complies with EU MiCA regulatory requirements, or the USD1 launched through a collaboration between Binance and WIFL. In the increasingly crowded trading field, many CEXs have shifted their focus from just the trading market to the application field.


The golden age of transaction fees has quietly ended, and the second half of the crypto exchange platform game has silently begun.


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1. Top News: Coinbase Faces Double Blow with 'SEC Investigation' and 'User Data Breach,' Stock Price Drops by 7.2% 2. Token Unlocking: $ARB, $AVAX, $PRIME, $ASTR, $1INCH

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