Coinbase Pro Reviews for April 2024

Coinbase Wallet launches instant messaging feature with XMTP. Coinbase Wallet users can now send instant messages to each other using their Ethereum identities, according to a July 12 blog post from Coinbase. The new feature relies on the Extensible Message Transport Protocol (XMTP), an instant messaging system that allows users to communicate using blockchain addresses. XMTP is also used by decentralized social media network Lens. According to Coinbase’s post, select wallet users can now send messages to each other’s cb.id, .eth, or Lens usernames. The feature is being rolled out first to all users who scan a QR code from the blog post or who own Lens profiles, with all users gaining access at some point in the future. Messages are end-to-end encrypted to ensure privacy, and users can block addresses they don’t want to see messages from. Coinbase stated that one of the motivations for releasing the feature was to cut down on fraud in the crypto community. Since users can now send messages directly to the owner of a wallet address, they won't need to rely on a separate platform for messaging where the recipient’s Web3 identity may not be verifiable. Coinbase said this may “eliminate unnecessary risk and potential losses.”

Coinbase reminds world it tried to ‘embrace regulation’ as SEC sues for violations. Coinbase met with the SEC 30 times in 2022 seeking regulatory guidance and now it will “vigorously defend” itself, it says. “Coinbase has embraced regulation since we were founded over a decade ago,” the cryptocurrency exchange’s chief legal officer, Paul Grewal, told the United States Congress on June 6. “The SEC [Securities and Exchange Commission] allowed us to become a public company in April 2021, which makes us unique in the crypto industry.” Coinbase was sued by the SEC for alleged securities law violations on June 6, a day after the agency sued Binance and two and a half months after receiving a Wells notice warning the U.S.-based exchange of possible impending action by the regulator.

Coinbase has promised a vigorous defense against the SEC charges. “We are confident in our facts and the law,” Armstrong said in a tweet June 6. The company released a video it called “By the numbers” the same day. In it, the company said it mentioned staking 57 times in the S1 report it filed with the SEC before its initial public offering. Coinbase’s staking program is a major alleged securities violation in the SEC suit. Furthermore, Coinbase “met with the SEC in 2022 asking for guidance” 30 times, the new video claimed. It also filed a petition for rulemaking on staking in March. Grewal pointed out in his June 6 appearance before the House of Representatives Committee on Agriculture that Coinbase is not currently unregulated. It is a registered money services business with the Treasury Department, and Coinbase Asset Management is a registered investment adviser with the SEC and a licensed designated contract market regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Coinbase also has money transmission licenses in 45 states. Be that as it may, 10 states joined together to issue a Show Cause Order against Coinbase, also on June 6, giving the exchange 28 days to show why those states’ regulators should not issue a cease-and-desist order against it for securities law violations.

Coinbase stock plunges 20% on SEC lawsuit. The cryptocurrency exchange faces scrutiny from state regulators simultaneous to the SEC litigation. The stock of cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase plunged more than 20% at the open on June 6. At the time of publication, shares have pared some losses and are currently trading at $50.14, compared to an intra-day low of $46.43. The company’s market capitalization currently stands at $13.7 billion. The same day, the United States Securities and Commission filed a lawsuit against Coinbase, alleging the operations of an unregistered national securities exchange, broker and clearing agency and failing to register the offer and sale of its crypto asset staking-as-a-service program.

Coinbase execs visit UAE to test potential of ‘strategic hub’ for international operations. “I think the U.S. right now is a little bit behind in terms of regulatory clarity and some of the rhetoric from the top," said Brian Armstrong at the Dubai FinTech Summit. Following United States-based crypto exchange Coinbase announcing the launch of its global derivatives platform, key executives at the firm are meeting with industry leaders and policymakers in the United Arab Emirates. In a May 7 blog post, Coinbase said CEO Brian Armstrong and some of the firm’s executive team planned to discuss the potential for the UAE “to be a strategic hub” for the crypto exchange. According to the company, it was working with regulators in the Abu Dhabi Global Market and Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority as part of efforts to potentially expand into the region. “[The UAE is] exciting for us as a potential hub to build as well, an international hub for Coinbase that could serve not only in the Middle East but parts of Africa or other countries in Asia,” said Armstrong at the Dubai Fintech Summit on May 8. “I think the U.S. right now is a little bit behind in terms of regulatory clarity and some of the rhetoric from the top.”

Coinbase supports new court action to remove Tornado Cash ban. The motion is part of a broader effort to restore internet privacy rights for United States citizens. The United States Treasury faces a renewed legal challenge that aims to overturn the decision to sanction the crypto mixer Tornado Cash, filed by six individuals backed by the cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase. A motion for a partial summary judgment was filed on April 5 in a Texas District Court, with the Coinbase-backed plaintiffs moving for the U.S. Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) to settle for the first two counts from its original complaint filed in September 2022. If granted, it would see the judge rule on some of the factual issues while leaving others for the trial. The counts claimed OFAC exceeded its statutory powers under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and violated the free speech clause of the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment. The plaintiffs firstly claimed that OFAC breached a section of the IEEPA that allows the Treasury to take action against the property in which a foreign country or foreign national has an interest.

Coinbase announces suspension of BUSD trading beginning March 13. The San Francisco-based cryptocurrency exchange referred to its "listing standards" in a tweet. Coinbase will suspend trading for the Binance USD stablecoin on March 13, the exchange announced on Feb. 27. The message mentioned its “listing standards” as being behind the decision. BUSD is the third-largest stablecoin by market capitalization. The decision will apply to Coinbase.com (simple and advanced), Coinbase Pro, Coinbase Exchange and Coinbase Prime, according to the Twitter thread. The exchange added, “Your BUSD funds will remain accessible to you, and you will continue to have the ability to withdraw your funds at any time.”

Coinbase CEO invites DC residents over for ice cream and crypto talk. Brian Armstrong said he had about an hour at the Dirksen Senate Office in Washington, D.C. to “chat about crypto” and enjoy low-sugar food at the building’s snack bar. Brian Armstrong, CEO of United States-based cryptocurrency firm Coinbase, is looking for lawmakers and regulators to discuss regulatory clarity in the crypto space. In a Feb. 13 tweet, Armstrong put a call out for anyone with access to the Dirksen Senate Office in Washington, D.C. to meet him at the building’s snack bar and “chat about crypto.” According to the Coinbase CEO, he was looking for “low sugar options” amid the selection of soft serve ice cream and toppings. “I’m in Washington D.C. and had a meeting canceled,” said Armstrong. “If anyone wants to come chat about crypto and how we get crypto legislation + regulatory clarity this year.”

Coinbase report shows dramatic increase in law enforcement enquiries worldwide. The crypto exchange says the overall number of enquiries is up 66%, with the United States producing the most by far; the U.S., and three European countries made 80% of all requests. Coinbase has seen information requests from law enforcement surge over the past year, the cryptocurrency exchange reported in its latest transparency report. The vast majority of the enquiries came from the United States and were tied to criminal investigations. Coinbase’s new transparency report covers the last four quarters ending with September. In that time, the exchange received 12,320 information requests from law enforcement, an increase of about 66%. The United States accounted for 5,304, or 43%, of those requests. The United Kingdom, Germany and Spain produced between 1,000 and 2,000 requests apiece. Those four countries accounted for 80% of requests, while 57 other countries also made requests. The 1,304 requests from Spain represent an increase o 940%. It was one of six countries that had more than doubled their enquiries in the last year. Twenty-one countries sent requests for the first time during the reporting period, including the Czech Republic, which sent 104 of them.

Coinbase and Kraken experience limited services amid markets turbulence. They are reportedly facing latency issues due to the high level of new user sign-ups and transfers to the platform. Both Coinbase’s and Kraken’s platforms were down or experiencing intermittent latency issues on Nov. 8 amid market turbulence, according to users’ complaints on Twitter. The news followed the day’s earlier revelation that crypto exchange Binance intends to acquire its rival FTX. According to Twitter users, services were limited on both exchanges, with issues related to connectivity to the platforms and unconfirmed rumors of halted withdrawals. On its support profile, Coinbase said it was “experiencing network connection issues for Coinbase.com, Coinbase Pro, and Coinbase Prime. This could result in difficulty signing in. If you’re already signed in you may experience slow loading across web and the mobile app.” The exchange claimed that the issue was related to the high level of new user sign-ups and transfers to the platform on Nov. 8.

Coinbase expands to Australia with focus on institutions in 'months to come’. With an expanded Australian offering, Coinbase’s VP of international and business development said the exchange faced “tough questions” from regulators and policymakers about its services. United States-based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase will expand its services in Australia, launching a local entity and an updated suite of services for retail crypto traders, hinting that institutional products are soon to follow. Speaking to Cointelegraph, Nana Murugesan, Coinbase’s VP of international and business development, said building during bear markets has “paid off big time during the bull run” and he’s confident in what he sees in the local market. The “baseline signals” Murugesan explains such as the local awareness of crypto and people who view it as the future of finance are “kind of on par or even better” in Australia compared to the U.S. and other markets.

Coinbase says it will ‘evaluate any potential forks’ following the Merge. “Should an ETH PoW fork arise following The Merge, this asset will be reviewed with the same rigor as any other asset that is listed on our exchange,” said Coinbase. Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has updated its information related to Ethereum transitioning to proof-of-stake (PoS) to include forks that could arise. In a Thursday update to an Aug. 16 blog post, Coinbase said it would evaluate any potential forks in the Ethereum blockchain on a “case by case basis.” The crypto exchange previously said it planned to “briefly pause” Ether (ETH) and ERC-20 token deposits and withdrawals during the Merge, which is expected to occur between Sept. 10 and 20. Exchanges and crypto firms dealing in ETH have made announcements informing clients of any preparations needed ahead of the Merge from proof-of-work (PoW) to PoS. Many expect the blockchain’s energy consumption to drop precipitously, scalability to improve and the network will be less vulnerable to attacks. It’s unclear how crypto users might respond to a forked PoW token listed on Coinbase or any crypto exchange as Ethereum transitions. On Wednesday, the platform launched an ERC-20 token that will allow customers to use staked ETH while earning rewards, called Coinbase Wrapped Staked ETH, or cbETH.

Coinbase NFT marketplace: How to buy NFTs on Coinbase? Connect your crypto wallet to the Coinbase marketplace, and have ETH in your wallet to bid, buy and sell NFTs on Coinbase. Not only is the number of nonfungible token (NFT) collections growing at a phenomenal rate, but so are the NFT marketplaces. Previously, NFT marketplaces were mainly decentralized applications (dApps) on various blockchains, but nowadays, crypto exchanges are also seeing the benefits of having their own NFT marketplace. This includes Coinbase, the exchange with the most users worldwide, which, of course, cannot lag behind the competition. The American crypto exchange was founded in 2012 and was initially mainly involved in the buying and selling process of cryptocurrencies. Over the years, additional services have been added such as staking cryptocurrencies on Coinbase and establishing its own NFT marketplace. This is a big step for the adoption of NFTs, as tens of millions of people worldwide are using Coinbase. For many millions of people, this makes it a lot easier to invest in NFTs.

Coinbase launches new crypto think tank to help shape policies. Coinbase’s new “crypto native think tank” features an advisory board of finance and law academics from top United States universities and will publish original research to shape policies around crypto. Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has created a “crypto native think tank” in an attempt to help shape the global conversation around policies for digital assets. The newly formed Coinbase Institute will also publish research on crypto and Web3. Coinbase tapped its director of policy Hermine Wong to head the institute. She previously served in the Division of Economic and Risk Analysis at the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and before that worked at the Department of State. The related Coinbase Institute Advisory Board has also been formed and will feature academics across law and finance from top universities such as Harvard, MIT, Duke and John Hopkins, coupled with an academic partnership with the University of Michigan.

Coinbase's plans to purchase firm behind Mercado Bitcoin fall through. The crypto exchange previously announced the acquisition of blockchain infrastructure platform Bison Trails as well as the Routefire platform. Coinbase and Brazilian company 2TM, the parent company of Mercado Bitcoin, have reportedly scrapped talks around the crypto exchange purchasing the firm. According to a Tuesday Bloomberg report, 2TM and Coinbase have ended discussions around the United States-based crypto exchange buying the Brazilian company, which was valued at more than $2 billion. It’s unclear what led to the purchase not going through, as 2TM reportedly declined to comment and a Coinbase spokesperson said it was simply “committed to the Brazilian market.” As the parent company of Mercado Bitcoin — one of the largest crypto brokerage firms in Latin America — 2TM cemented its unicorn status in July 2021 following a $200 million funding round, pushing the company ahead of a $2 billion valuation. Cointelegraph reported in March that 2TM was valued at $2.2 billion ahead of Coinbase’s reported plans to purchase the firm. In addition, 2TM acquired a controlling stake in Lisbon-based crypto exchange CriptoLoja in January. A Coinbase institutional investor report on Latin America from December 2021 suggested interest in expanding operations in Brazil. In April, Brazil’s Senate approved a law to regulate cryptocurrencies in the country, expected to be signed into law by President Jair Bolsonaro by the end of 2022. Rio de Janeiro, the second-most populous city in Brazil, also announced in March it will accept Bitcoin (BTC) payments for taxes related to urban real estate within city limits starting in 2023.

Coinbase suspended some payment services on its newly launched Indian exchange due to pressure from the local payment regulators. The largest United States-based crypto exchange Coinbase has stopped payment services through United Payments Interface (UPI) on its platform for Indian users just three days after its launch in the South Asian subcontinent. The UPI is the payment portal governed by the National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI), which facilitates buy orders on Coinbase’s India services. The exchange has already updated its payment method information on its website for Indian users, which urges users to try Immediate Payment Service (IMP) to place sell orders. The NPCI is a special division of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), under the Ministry of Finance. Financial news outlet Business Standard reported on Monday that Coinbase stated that it would work to remedy the situation in India with the appropriate regulators and that it was “committed to working with NPCI and other relevant authorities to ensure that we are aligned, with local expectations and industry norms.” The NPCI said in a statement on Thursday that it did not recognize the legal standing of any crypto exchanges using the RBI’s United Payments Interface (UPI) even after Coinbase announced the release of its services. The impetus for the suspension may have arisen from this comment: “With reference to some media reports around the purchase of Cryptocurrencies using UPI, National Payments Corporation of India would like to clarify that we are not aware of any crypto exchange using UPI.” Indian Coinbase users do not appear to be vexed by the sudden suspension of service. Co-founder of the Crypto India YouTube channel Aditya Singh tweeted to his 210,000 followers on Monday that “This is not new, Indian exchanges have also been facing payment service problems since 2018.”

Coinbase to increase transparency on potential 2022 listings. The exchange issued the names of 50 projects that could possibly be listed in the second quarter of 2022 as a way of adding information symmetry to crypto markets. America’s largest crypto exchange, Coinbase, announced a long list of tokens it could potentially list in the second quarter of 2022 in an effort to increase transparency. A Tuesday blog post from the exchange includes a list of tokens under consideration, but notes that other tokens may be under consideration but not specifically mentioned. Among those on their radar are 45 ERC-20 tokens on the Ethereum network and five SPL tokens on the Solana network. Some of the tokens with a relatively large market cap are Binance USD (BUSD), which is the third-largest stablecoin on the market, and one of the largest DAO projects BitDAO (BIT), which boasts a market cap of just over $1 billion at the time of writing, according to CoinGecko data. The exchange stated that its new approach toward token listings will also provide “as much information symmetry as possible.” Information symmetry promotes efficiency and fairness within a market. It also reduces the chances for a pump-and-dump scenario on listing day, as the retail trading frenzy can be mitigated by advanced knowledge of a listing. While it is far more common on other centralized and decentralized exchanges, Coinbase has had its share of such price action on coins it lists. In 2020, OMG Network pumped 200% within 15 minutes of being listed on Coinbase and crashed moments later. Crypto projects are aware of the attention a Coinbase listing, or even just the potential one can bring. The relatively small decentralized finance (DeFi) data tokenizer Big Data Protocol, with a $3.3 million market cap according to CoinGecko, tweeted in delight on Tuesday that Coinbase was giving it looks at potentially being listed. However, while the increased transparency may be a boon for investors and projects, the seasoned crypto trader from Twitter account “12yearoldwithcc” believes the potential listings are lackluster. The account tweeted today that “Coinbase is in their flop era.”

Coinbase kicks off retail crypto trading services in India. One of the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchanges Coinbase has gilded its way into the country with the largest number of crypto holders present. At an event hosted in Bengaluru, Coinbase confirmed that it has launched digital assets trading services in India, with plans to lead Web3 expansion in the country. Part of the expansion included the exchange conducting mass recruitment with intentions to triple its team in India by the end of 2022. The app, catering to its Indian audience, is integrated with the popular UPI payment process. The Unified Payments Interface (UPI), which is an instant real-time payment system administered by India’s central bank, accounts for approximately 60% of the retail payment volume in the country. Coinbase expansion plans in India came despite the stringent regulatory environment in the country. The Indian government recently implemented a 30% tax rule on cryptocurrencies and NFT related transactions, placing them in the highest tax bracket. In addition, it has also levied a 1% TDS, which is set to enforce from July 1. However, Coinbase has so far remained enthusiastic about its plans to enter the Indian market. It has already invested about $150 million in the country’s crypto startups, such as Polygon, CoinDCX, CoinSwitch Kuber, and more.

Coinbase, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, has expanded its staking offerings to include Cardano’s native token ADA. Announcing the news on Thursday, the exchange revealed plans to add more tokens to its staking portfolio in 2022. Per the blog post, delegators can expect to earn up to 3.75% APY as the estimated annual return from staking ADA on Coinbase. Users will receive awards in their accounts every 5–7 days after the initial holding period of 20–25 days ends. The company noted that ADA allows staking through a dedicated wallet, the process can be “confusing and complicated.” Using Coinbase service would allow users to participate and earn rewards in an “easy, secure way.” With the latest addition, Coinbase now offers staking services for Ethereum (ETH), ALGO, Cosmos (ATOM), Tezos (XTZ), and Cardano (ADA).

Crypterium, the fast-growing digital fintech solution helping customers manage their assets with ease, has announced its largest listing in the history of the company on the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange, Coinbase. Transfers and wallet support for CRPT will now be available on Coinbase’s exchange with the Experimental Label in the regions where trading is supported, and will include the trading pairs CRPT/USD, CRPT/USDT and CRPT/EUR. Crypterium has also announced the collection of bids where investors transfer their tokens to Coinbase, and if there is enough volume they will begin trading in auction mode. Then they will be transferred into limit bids, and then into full trading on Coinbase’s exchange. Following this listing of CRPT on Coinbase, Crypterium expects to continue its growth and operations following the Coinbase listing.