Coinbase's (COIN) $2.9 billion acquisition of Deribit will be a tipping point for the company, pushing the U.S.-based exchange into direct competition with global heavyweights like Binance, Wall Street analysts wrote on Thursday.
The massive deal is more than just a platform expansion; it's a paradigm shift for the exchange and trading industry. According to the analysts, the deal signals the start of a new consolidation cycle in the crypto trading industry, as smaller exchanges face pressure and TradFi firms look to expand further into the sector.
Read more: In $2.9B Deal, Coinbase Buys Deribit to Expand in U.S. Crypto Options Market
Deribit controls 85% of the global crypto options market and reported $1.2 trillion in trading volume last year. By absorbing it, Coinbase becomes the world’s largest crypto derivatives platform by open interest and options activity, KeyBanc wrote in a report.
The deal also plugs a geographic gap, expanding Coinbase’s presence overseas, where just 20% of its revenue currently originates, according to Barclay’s Benjamin Buddish.
Oppenheimer called it a “legitimate threat” to dominant exchanges, noting that Coinbase’s public status gave it the ability to fund the acquisition using stock, an option not available to most private firms. That advantage, combined with $8.5 billion in cash on hand, could turn Coinbase into the most aggressive consolidator in the space.
Options markets are attractive in part because they offer steady volumes across market cycles. Barclays estimated Deribit’s 2024 revenue between $425 million and $450 million, suggesting a healthy earnings contribution to Coinbase’s bottom line.
KeyBanc also highlighted the strategic fit, calling Deribit’s institutional user base and international footprint a natural extension of Coinbase’s futures and spot products.
Regulatory approval for the deal remains pending, but analysts expect Coinbase to provide more color during its first-quarter earnings report on Thursday.
The exchange is expected to miss Street expectations for earnings in the first quarter as markets were rattled by economic uncertainty. Shares of COIN were up 6.58% on the day, while bitcoin rose 4.31%.
Read more: Coinbase Earnings Pain Likely as Retail Activity Slumps, Wall Street Analysts Warn
免责声明：本文章仅代表作者个人观点，不代表本平台的立场和观点。本文章仅供信息分享，不构成对任何人的任何投资建议。用户与作者之间的任何争议，与本平台无关。如网页中刊载的文章或图片涉及侵权，请提供相关的权利证明和身份证明发送邮件到support@aicoin.com，本平台相关工作人员将会进行核查。
