COINBASE Unveils Secret Blockchain Milestone
The prominent U.S. crypto exchange announces the launch of its blockchain, marking the pioneering entry of a publicly traded company into this domain. This strategic move reflects a substantial foray into a novel revenue avenue.
Coinbase (COIN), a major publicly traded U.S. cryptocurrency exchange, has announced the official launch of its "Base" blockchain. This marks a significant milestone, ushering in a fresh era where publicly traded companies operate their own decentralized networks. Although Base had previously been accessible to developers for testing purposes, Coinbase confirmed that as of Wednesday at 12 pm ET, it is now open to the public.
Coinbase, a widely monitored cryptocurrency stock, has embarked on a fresh business venture that has the potential to generate not only fees from operating its own blockchain but also a potentially more substantial revenue stream from applications developed on top of it, according to company executives. This strategic move aims to capitalize on multiple revenue sources in the crypto landscape.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong outlined a "secret master plan" in 2016, envisioning the company's fourth phase to revolve around "decentralized apps" (dapps) aimed at reaching a billion people. In April 2021, Coinbase directly listed its shares on Nasdaq.
Jesse Pollak, Coinbase's Head of Protocols overseeing Base, revealed that the new network already boasts 100 dapps either deployed or ready for launch. Pollak emphasized that the potential of crypto has historically been confined to speculation. To drive the desired impact, he stressed the need to integrate crypto into people's daily lives beyond mere speculation.
In conjunction with the Base launch, Coinbase disclosed an "Onchain Summer" campaign featuring partners like Coca-Cola to showcase the capabilities of the new project. This strategic move aligns with Coinbase's broader vision for the crypto landscape.
Base L2 Ranking
The recently introduced Base network is essentially a "layer 2" blockchain situated on top of Ethereum, constructed using the "OP Stack" software derived from Optimism, a widely recognized layer 2 network.
Before its official launch, the new Base network had already garnered substantial attention, with $139 million in deposits secured within apps and protocols, as reported by the crypto analysis firm L2Beat.
This sum of "total value locked" (TVL), a widely-used gauge for assessing blockchains and protocols, positions Base as the fifth-largest layer-2 blockchain. The top-ranking positions are held by Arbitrum One, boasting approximately $6 billion, followed by OP Mainnet with $2.9 billion, zkSync Era at $430 million, and dYdX with $336 million. These figures reflect the growing significance of the Base network in the layer 2 ecosystem.
Reference
Keoun, B. (2023) COINBASE officially launches ‘base’ blockchain, in milestone for a public company, CoinDesk Latest Headlines RSS. Available at: https://www.coindesk.com/tech/2023/08/09/coinbase-officially-launches-base-blockchain-milestone-for-a-public-company/ (Accessed: 10 August 2023).