Tako Founders Club Weekly Founder Spotlight | Base Founder Jesse

By: blockbeats|2025/04/28 06:05:28
Share
copy

Founder's Club (https://app.tako.so/community/trend/founders-club) is a space for founders to interact, share insights, and build connections. It also provides an opportunity for users interested in emerging and trending projects to engage in direct conversations with founders.

Within the Base ecosystem, due to the lack of a timely Chinese communication channel, the Chinese-speaking community has always felt somewhat detached. Therefore, in the sixth edition of the "Founder's AMA," we invited @Base Founder @jessepollak to engage directly with Chinese-speaking users. The conversation was divided into two parts: 1) Jesse answered representative questions from the community, with over 80 questions collected for this session; 2) Jesse conducted a real-time text Q&A session on Tako on April 25th at 10:30 am.

Below is a summary of the first part of the discussion. The AMA was hosted by Julie (@juliethetako).

Q1 Julie


This question is from Mable (@mablejiang): You mentioned previously that you hoped to do more in Asia. Could you share your development plans in Asia?

(Related questions were also asked by: @Xuegaogx, @DeFiGuyLuke, @0x35_kaori, @mablejiang, @0xNought, @PANewsCN, @Moose777, @jacktod_, @0xginana)

Jesse: Last autumn, I spent a few weeks in Asia and had conversations with some developers. This reaffirmed my belief that we need to do more in this region.

Recently, we hired a country lead in the Philippines, and there are currently open country lead positions in Indonesia and Singapore, with more positions to be available in the future. We also plan to engage in closer collaborations with developers in China. I understand the importance of localization for the Chinese market, so we will provide more communication channels and resources for Chinese-speaking developers, creators, and users. Stay tuned for more information later this year.

Q2 Julie

This question is from Star (@starzqeth): Solana has a clear positioning, what is Base's positioning? It feels like doing a bit of everything, but none as thorough as Solana.

(The following users also inquired about related questions: @Whdysseus, @Michael_Liu93, @leoding0806x, @framenum, @mablejiang, @hoidya_, @taowang1, @Moose777)

Jesse: Base is a global on-chain economy, and we are making Base accessible to everyone through the execution of the 2025 strategy (see link below), while always staying true to our core values (Stay Base). Specifically, this means:

· Building powerful and open tools to help anyone build world-class on-chain applications.

· Nurturing a vibrant ecosystem that connects open on-chain applications to expand the Base user base.

· Creating a robust on-chain account that provides seamless fund, identity, and governance services.

· Making Base the center of the on-chain economy, with a highly liquid, always-on global capital market.

· Decentralizing, scaling, and accelerating Base to enable everyone worldwide to participate in the on-chain economy.

I understand the challenge you mentioned about meeting everyone's needs is indeed difficult, but I believe that if we can execute along these directions, it should be achievable. Lastly, I have great respect for the Solana team, and bringing a billion people onto the chain is certainly not something any single entity can accomplish.

https://base.mirror.xyz/gFOLgyrs8jtX4Eqt4Kh6ikWhB3tqrhQoKfddeqZIECs

Q3 Julie

This question is from Wu Shuo (@wublockchain): What do you think is the biggest challenge and dilemma for Ethereum currently? Have these challenges already affected its overall ecosystem development? What key breakthroughs has Base made in the Ethereum ecosystem? From which perspectives can Base help Ethereum solve existing problems?

(The following users also inquired about related questions: @ai_9684xtpa@PANewsCN@ZKSgu@0xcryptoHowe@Benjieming1Q84)

Jesse: @brian_armstrong often says, "Things are never as good as they seem, nor as bad as they seem." Recently, there has been a lot of negative news about ETH's price, which I believe is mostly noise. I am more focused on using @base to address what I see as key issues and to make sure everything on-chain "runs smoothly":

· Fast and Cheap: Transactions on Base have remained at less than one cent for over a year. We recently released Flash Blocks on the testnet, bringing transaction speeds down to 200 milliseconds. Fast and cheap.

· Secure and Easy: The smart wallet has removed much of the complexity, helping users unfamiliar with cryptocurrency to easily get started, and it only requires operation in a browser without the need for additional extensions or app installations. We can also ensure everything runs smoothly through subsidizing gas fees and recovery features.

· Developer<>User Flywheel: Many people initially get involved for a specific token, then want to explore more functionalities but don't have a clear next step. We are introducing Farcaster and miniapps into @CoinbaseWallet, seamlessly integrating everything and driving the expansion of this flywheel.

Stay humble, keep building.

Q4 Julie

This question is from @yjy616: Base has seen many original meme projects emerge, and even some community-driven "cultural events" have gained good traction. In Jesse's view, are memes and native culture an important part of Base's differentiation? How will the Base team further support the development of grassroots meme culture, especially in non-English-speaking communities?

(The following users also asked related questions: @0xPickleCati @0xNought)

Jesse: Yes, memes are definitely a part of our culture and a key factor that sets Base apart strategically from other platforms. I once gave a lecture explaining why I believe memes are so crucial in this process. But in simple terms, I think memes, just like in Web2, are an essential user onboarding tool. And the meme builders on Base have brought us our most potent cultural force. Special thanks to @clankeronbase, @apedotstore, @ClizaSystems, and other platform and community efforts; their contributions have made all of this possible.

Additionally, I have recently been discussing "Content Coins." Just as a social media post may be just an image or may turn into a viral meme, a content coin is also a simple post without its value expected. I believe that much content will evolve into memes, and many memes will also create content! @1_crypticpoet has a great article explaining how these interact.

Q5 Julie

This question is from @anymose96: How to understand Base is for everyone, and why was the official reference token minted so quickly?

Jesse: First of all, let's clarify: Base is for everyone is a post released by Base on Zora, not a formal token. We have been publishing content on Zora for years and are very interested in their Content is Coined new model.

Why did we do this? Because unlocking tokens provides a powerful tool for creators to earn income through creativity and paves the way for more experimental attempts. There has been a lot of discussion about this, with everyone debating whether it is a good or bad thing. My view is that people are accustomed to a traditional understanding of tokens, and this approach is new and different. We anticipated some criticism and indeed found it a bit daunting. If we could do it over, I would have @base make more statements and clarifications from the beginning.

Looking ahead, we will continue to mint coins because we believe everyone should bring their content to the chain. Our goal is to lead by example through action and experiment in public. If you want to learn more, you can listen to this great podcast by clicking here to view the Zora link

Q6 Julie

This question is from @jacktod_: base's future plan is to attract more web2 users to join web3. I have also seen the team engaging in various degrees of communication around the world, spreading knowledge, etc. What is the main purpose of getting users on-chain? Is it mainly at the level of everyday consumption, or is it more focused on defi, gamefi?

Jesse: Every day, I think about how to bring a billion people onto the chain, and the reality is, we cannot achieve this goal just by attracting those who are already interested in cryptocurrency. We need to expand this "cake," and to do that, I believe the answer is all the methods mentioned above. Our mission is to build a global on-chain economy that includes everyone.

Payments are a great example that showcases how on-chain technology can improve people's lives. I witnessed this firsthand last year while traveling globally, seeing how forex and international payments are so crucial for people to access the global economy. Stablecoins in local currencies and fast, low-cost on-chain payments have solved many real-world issues for people: they are almost instant, unlike traditional payments that take days, and the fees are as low as less than a cent (USD-denominated) instead of 3% or $50 or even more.

On-chain finance, social, entertainment, music, art, games, content... all these areas can improve people's lives by transferring control to developers and creators, rather than being centralized in the hands of large corporations.

Q7 Julie

This question is from @adJAstra: Do you think Coinbase Wallet will evolve into the ultimate platform for handling all on-chain transactions, especially in terms of app distribution and promotion? How far are we from this vision?

Jesse: It's coming soon! We have been rebuilding @CoinbaseWallet from scratch over the past few months, with the goal of making it 10 times faster while shifting the focus to solving the issues of discovery and distribution.

Once someone has purchased their first token, the next steps are not really intuitive in terms of what they can do next or what apps they might be interested in trying. Therefore, we are integrating Farcaster social feeds with mini-apps directly into @CoinbaseWallet and enabling users to easily discover on-chain experiences within the app without having to leave.

In this video, I detailed this point: Link. We will share more updates next week at Farcon!

Q8 Julie

This question is from @TechFlowPost: We see Base or yourself often interacting with Zora. What is the reason the team or you personally are bullish on Zora? What is Zora's unique positioning and ecosystem value within the Base ecosystem?

(The following user also asked a related question: @framenum)

Jesse: I am very bullish on on-chain social media as it has the potential to drive viral adoption, and Zora is a great example of this (if you haven't tried the app yet, download it now).

In traditional social platforms, centralized companies control content and users. In on-chain social media, creators own their content and can earn income when they share (beyond just likes). Posts on Zora are automatically minted, and creators receive a portion of transaction fees. In this way, on-chain social media disrupts the traditional model by returning control to creators.

Over the past week or so, I have witnessed firsthand how powerful this model is in attracting new users to the space. You can use Zora without knowing about cryptocurrency and earn from your own posts. I believe we need more apps like this to help onboard billions to the blockchain.

Looking forward to seeing more creative initiatives from other developers in this space!

Q9 Julie

This question is from @PANewsCN: In Base's recently released 2025 roadmap, the goal of achieving 25 million users, 25,000 developers, and 1 billion on-chain transactions within the year was proposed. What strategies and measures does Base plan to take to achieve these growth goals, and how are the priorities of these goals ranked?

(The following user also asked a related question: @Cyrus_G3)

Jesse: These are what we call "big, bold, audacious goals." If we hit 100% of our goals, it means we didn't think big enough, so I challenge our team to set even larger goals. If we want to onboard a billion people to the blockchain, these are the strategies we must take.

So, what are we doing to achieve this goal?

We are increasing our investment in more powerful and open developer tools. We are particularly focused on developers because they will build the on-chain applications that will attract billions of users.

We are rebuilding @coinbasewallet from the ground up to make it 10 times faster, more user-friendly, and to enhance content discovery through the addition of Farcaster social dynamics. We are also integrating mini-apps to allow users to experience them within the app without leaving.

We are continuing to decentralize, scale, and speed up Base because we believe that building a truly global economy can only be done by creating a decentralized, open platform. In the first phase, there will be a capacity of 250 mgas/s and faster blocks. More details can be found in the blog post below: Click here to view the blog post

Q10 Julie

This question is from @0xLuo: What directions do you hope developers on Base will focus on? What important products or categories do you currently feel are missing in the ecosystem?

(The following users also asked related questions: @Xuegaogx @hoidya_ @0xcryptoHowe @Moose777 @PANewsCN @TeddyinEden @Nazarick_eth)

Jesse: We have just launched Base Batches (basebatches.xyz), which covers four main themes: AI, stablecoins, mini-apps, and consumer applications. I am very excited to see developers build more projects in these areas, as there are really a lot of opportunities. If you are a developer looking for support from zero to one, feel free to join Base Batches!

Q11 Julie

This question is from @Benjieming1Q84: Is Farcaster considering full adoption by Chinese users? If Farcaster is not considering this, how will base/coinbase wallet cover different regions and languages?

(The following user also asked a related question: @adJAstra@jacktod_)

Jesse: I know that Warpcast is not currently localized for Chinese users, but I am thrilled to see clients like @tako accelerating efforts to fill this gap. However, if we want the Chinese community to fully embrace this network, there is still a lot of work to be done.

This is very important to me and is one of the reasons I am hosting this AMA, hoping to interact more directly with the Chinese community. Currently, I do not have specific features or timelines to share, but my team is recruiting country leads across Asia, with a particular focus on Chinese speakers. We are dedicated to building a more inclusive global network.

Base is for everyone—this means we will invest more effort in the localization of Base, Farcaster, and the entire community in the future.

Q12 Julie

This question is from @adJAstra: What is the roadmap for Coinbase Wallet integrating Farcaster? How will user behavior change when users access social content or mini-apps through Warpcast via Coinbase Wallet instead of c directly?

Jesse: We are rebuilding Coinbase Wallet from the ground up, with plans for full Farcaster social dynamics, as well as mini-apps that can be interacted with directly in the feed. This will start rolling out soon!

I believe that the strength of adding this feature to Coinbase Wallet is that we can support it within the existing user context. This will not only provide more distribution channels for apps but also help users discover apps they may be interested in. I think this will bring more user engagement for developers like you, and I am very excited about it.

Q13 Julie

This question is from @kongxairdrop: Does Base have plans to issue its own token in the future?

(The following users also asked related questions: @almalq.eth @aaron183Aaros@CryptoPainter_X)

Jesse: We do not have plans to issue a new network token. Base uses ETH as the native asset to pay for Gas fees. My current focus is on building an excellent product that can serve developers (those creating applications), as well as users and businesses (those using these applications) effectively.

Q14 Julie

This question is from @CryptoPainter_X: Although Base has promised a multi-signature structure to ensure immunity from Coinbase's influence, in the Chinese-speaking community, the "incubated by CB" label and the naming of "Base" seem to have been equated to some extent early on. I would like to ask, in the future, how does Base plan to achieve comprehensive independence on both a technical and social level and completely shed this label that has long influenced its development?

Jesse: Base is open and permissionless. Despite our incubation within Coinbase (similar to how many other networks are also incubated in labs), we have a deep commitment to decentralization. Why? Because we believe that only on a decentralized platform can a global on-chain economy thrive, promoting innovation, creativity, and freedom.

From the beginning, Coinbase and Base have adhered to principles of neutrality, ensuring users' sovereignty over their crypto assets, ensuring unbiased transaction ordering on Base, protecting the discretion of non-public data, and guaranteeing users the ability to withdraw from Base without restrictions. Over the past year, we have focused on achieving the first phase of decentralization, and soon we will share more progress on this front.

I also believe that we need to continue working to establish Base as an independent brand and ecosystem, distinguishing it perceptually from Coinbase while leveraging all the advantages that come from collaboration. We will soon have some exciting updates to share on this front :)

Q15 Julie

This question is from @0xLuo: What support can Base developers receive from the official team? For example, funding, exposure, guidance? What is the best way to obtain this support?

(The following users also asked related questions: @taowang1 @framenum)

Jesse: We are committed to supporting developers at various stages, whether you have just released your first on-chain experiment or are scaling a real business, we are here to support you.

I am very excited to introduce to everyone a brand new project — Base Batches, which is a global developer program aimed at providing developers with everything they need to grow — funding, exposure, mentor support, community resources, you name it.

It is divided into several stages: First, you join the Buildathon in your region (we hold events globally). If you excel, you have the opportunity to enter our incubator, where you will receive hands-on support from mentors, Base core team members, and outstanding partners. Next is Demo Day, where the top-performing teams will showcase to the judges, vying for up to $1 million in funding support.

This is not just a one-time event — we are building a long-term support system to help you from ideation to gaining traction, and then developing into a full-fledged company. We aim to support you at every stage.

Visit base.org/build now to join a batch!

Q16 Julie

This question is from @TeddyinEden: Base gives off a clean, mainstream, and brand-friendly vibe. What is your attitude towards projects that are more on the edge, provocative, or controversial? Can such projects find a place on Base?

(The following user has also asked a related question: @hoidya_)

Jesse: Base welcomes everyone from everywhere.

Lastly, thanks to all users who participated in asking questions! If your question was not addressed or if you have follow-up questions, you can join the live AMA session tomorrow, April 25th at 10:30 AM, to ask your question, and Jesse will answer in real-time!


Special thanks to: @0x35_kaori@0xHarryWeb3@0xLuo@0xNought@0xPickleCati@0xcryptoHowe@0xginana@Anonymous@Bamboocrycry@Benjieming1Q84@Candy@CryptoPainter_X@Cyrus_G3@DeFiGuyLuke@EEEEdison1992@KathySats@Michael_Liu93@Moose777@Nazarick_eth@PANewsCN@RaccoonHKG@TechFlowPost@TeddyinEden@Whdysseus@Xuegaogx@ZKSgu@aaron183Aaros@adJAstra@ai_9684xtpa@alacheng@alexin091@almalq@anymose96@framenum@hoidya_@jacktod_@joezhoublack@kongxairdrop@leo7_lau@leoding0806x@lurenbian@mablejiang@noneptr@otzgary@ps2025moon@sheabao@starzqeth@taowang1@wangzai5680@wublockchain@yjy616@silverfang88@jhaninvest@the_andydandy

Original Article Link

You may also like

a16z Leads $18M Seed Round for Catena Labs, Crypto Industry Bets on Stablecoin AI Payment

Traditional finance is still stuck in a "human-to-human" model, while Catena aims to achieve "AI-to-AI" interaction.

Pharos, deeply integrated with AntChain, is about to launch. How can we get involved?

What is the relationship between the $8 million funded NewChain and Ant, and how will they interact?

$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.


Arthur Hayes: Why I'm Betting on ETH While the Market Is Obsessed with SOL

"I personally have also allocated 20% to gold, expecting the price of gold to potentially rise to $10,000-20,000 by the end of this market cycle."

CryptoPunks Changes Hands Twice, Did the Originator of NFTs Finally Find Its "Forever Home" This Time?

The original NFT pioneer CryptoPunks has once again officially changed ownership after being sold to the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) developer Yuga Labs.

The End and Rebirth of NFTs: How the Meme Coin Craze Ended the PFP Era?

There must be another Labubu hidden beneath the ruins.

Popular coins

Latest Crypto News

Read more