Will the United States truly win the crypto battle? While Asia widens the gap in terms of adoption, Americans are redoubling their technological ingenuity. Examining Coinbase, the answer becomes clearer: innovation, long-term vision, and a revenue expansion strategy are at play. With the potential for a future native token for its Base network, the most institutional crypto exchange in the Americas is positioning itself for significant financial gains.
In brief
- •The Base network has surpassed $5 billion in total value locked since its launch by Coinbase.
- •JPMorgan estimates the potential market capitalization of a future Base token to be between $12 and $34 billion.
- •Coinbase plans to offer USDC yields exclusively to subscribers of its Coinbase One service.
- •An integration of decentralized exchanges (DEXes) within the app will provide Coinbase users access to all on-chain assets.
Base: Coinbase’s Secret Network Aiming to Compete with Ethereum
Since its launch in August 2023, Coinbase's Base network has steadily risen in the crypto rankings. Constructed as a Layer 2 solution on Ethereum, it has already accumulated over $5 billion in total value locked (TVL). The prospect of a native token, currently under consideration, is generating significant interest from Wall Street.
JPMorgan, in a note published on October 24, estimates that this token could potentially value the activity on Base at up to $34 billion. Coinbase, by retaining approximately 40%, could directly secure between $4 and $12 billion in value. This represents a substantial growth opportunity for the American crypto industry.
Jesse Pollak, the architect of the Base network, views the token as a means to accelerate decentralization and attract more developers to the ecosystem. He sees it as a strategic instrument extending beyond mere profit generation.
The overarching objective is to establish Base as a large-scale platform for decentralized finance (DeFi), managed remotely by Coinbase but designed for eventual independent operation.
Coinbase's Innovative Subscription Strategy in Web3
The Base token is not the sole element of Coinbase's strategic initiative. The platform also aims to reconfigure the distribution of yields generated by USDC, the stablecoin issued by Circle. Currently, Coinbase returns a significant portion of these generated interests (approximately $400 million annually) to its users.
In the future, only Coinbase One subscribers are expected to receive these yields. This model, inspired by the Robinhood Gold program, is designed to transform USDC into a premium revenue source, leveraging user-deposited reserves.
Another significant innovation is Coinbase's integration of a DEX (decentralized exchange) aggregator directly into the Base application. This move allows Coinbase to capture value from these platforms without directly competing with them. Max Branzburg, VP of Products at Coinbase, elaborated on this strategy:
We’ve seen millions of assets get created and traded on decentralised exchanges, but only few people have been able to navigate those decentralised exchanges to access and trade the assets that they want. Coinbase will be going from one asset 13 years ago in Bitcoin to hundreds of assets today to soon having every asset onchain available to trade in the Coinbase app by default.
This approach effectively integrates the decentralized universe into a centralized interface, demonstrating considerable strategic acumen.
Crypto, Token, and COIN Stock: Wall Street's 2026 Outlook
Wall Street is keenly observing these developments, aiming not to miss out on potential gains. The JPMorgan report projects a target price of $404 for Coinbase stock by December 2026, a notable increase from its current price of approximately $355. This projected 14% rise is attributed to the combined impact of the Base token, new USDC revenue streams, and the DEX integration.
Kenneth Worthington, an analyst at JPMorgan, considers the Base token a significant catalyst. He believes it will serve as a tool to reflect network growth and further strengthen Coinbase's ecosystem, which is already recognized as one of the most comprehensive in the cryptocurrency sector.
Key Takeaways:
- •$5 billion: The total value locked on Base, Coinbase's Layer 2 solution.
- •9 million: The number of daily transactions already recorded, according to DeFiLlama.
- •$34 billion: The potential valuation of the future Base token, as estimated by JPMorgan.
- •$374 million per year: The potential revenue from restricting USDC yields to non-subscribers.
Base has evolved beyond a mere side project. At the close of September, the network surpassed expectations by dominating the NFT market, recording 1.27 million transactions in a single month. For a network launched less than a year prior, this achievement sends a powerful message: Coinbase may have secured its most potent weapon in the ongoing crypto competition.