Coinbase Global, Inc. (COIN) Business Model Canvas

Coinbase Global, Inc. (COIN): Business Model Canvas [Dec-2025 Updated]

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You're looking at the engine room of Coinbase Global, Inc. as of late 2025, and honestly, it's a lot more than just a place to buy Bitcoin anymore. This company has aggressively pivoted, moving from a simple on-ramp to a full-stack crypto financial utility, evidenced by their push into derivatives and securing custody for major players like BlackRock's Spot Bitcoin ETFs. With over 110 million users and Q3 2025 transaction revenue hitting $1.05 billion, the core question is how they balance regulatory trust-their biggest asset-with the massive R&D spend needed to scale the Base Layer 2 ecosystem. Dig into the full Business Model Canvas below to see exactly how Coinbase Global, Inc. is structuring its $516 billion custody business and generating revenue from staking, USDC interest, and trading fees.

Coinbase Global, Inc. (COIN) - Canvas Business Model: Key Partnerships

You're mapping out Coinbase Global, Inc.'s strategic alliances as of late 2025. These partnerships are defintely the engine driving their institutional and retail adoption strategy, so let's look at the hard numbers behind the relationships.

The integration with major financial institutions is key for fiat on-ramps. Coinbase announced a partnership with JPMorgan Chase on July 30, 2025, aiming to make crypto access easier for Chase's over 80 million customers. This deal sets up three new access points: Chase credit cards funding Coinbase accounts starting in Fall 2025, direct bank linking, and the ability to transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points to USDC, with the latter two features expected in 2026.

For institutional custody, especially around the Spot Bitcoin ETFs, the relationship with issuers like BlackRock is critical. Coinbase Prime acts as the custodian for BlackRock's institutional needs. For instance, on October 27, 2025, BlackRock moved assets totaling approximately $226 million to Coinbase Prime, specifically 1,021 BTC (valued around $118 million) and 25,707 ETH (valued around $107 million), likely for ETF rebalancing. A similar operational flow occurred on December 1, 2025, when BlackRock transferred 2,156 BTC, valued at $186 million, to Coinbase Prime.

The partnership with Circle for the USDC stablecoin is a massive revenue driver. For the first quarter of 2025, the Coinbase-Circle partnership generated $300 million in revenue, which outpaced Circle's own net revenue for that period. On-platform USDC balances, which reached $13 billion in Q1 2025, yielded $125 million in earnings for Coinbase at margins between 20% and 25%. Furthermore, the 50/50 split of interest income from off-platform USDC added another $170 million, which nearly all converted to profit due to low overhead. As of December 4, 2025, USDC in Circulation stood at $77.96 billion, backed by $78.10 billion in USD reserves. Coinbase holds a 67% market share in U.S. crypto markets, which is foundational to this success. Overall stablecoin settlement volumes in 2025 have already eclipsed $18 trillion across Q1 and Q2, beating both Visa and Mastercard volumes.

Coinbase is deeply embedded with public sector entities, positioning itself as a trusted bridge for government adoption. As of March 2025, Coinbase's Government Network supports 145 entities across U.S. federal, state, and local levels, alongside 29 global government entities. This includes a specific $35.5-million contract won in 2024 with the U.S. Marshals Service for custody and trading services.

The infrastructure backbone relies on major cloud providers. The following table outlines the key operational partners supporting Coinbase's scalable infrastructure, though specific 2025 financial commitments are not publicly detailed in the same manner as the financial partnerships:

Partner Category Specific Partner Example Observed Metric/Data Point (2025 Context)
Cloud Infrastructure Amazon Web Services (AWS) Used for scalable, global infrastructure deployment.
Cloud Infrastructure Google Cloud Used for scalable, global infrastructure deployment.
Fiat-to-Crypto Rails JPMorgan Chase Partnership to onboard 80M+ Chase customers; Credit card funding starts Fall 2025.
Institutional Custody BlackRock Custody for IBIT ETF; Moved $226 million in assets on Oct 27, 2025.
Stablecoin Issuance Circle Partnership generated $300 million revenue in Q1 2025 for Coinbase.
Government Adoption U.S. Federal/State/Local Agencies Working with 145 U.S. and 29 global entities as of March 2025.

You'll want Finance to track the Q4 2025 revenue split from the Circle agreement, as the next review is due in 2026.

Coinbase Global, Inc. (COIN) - Canvas Business Model: Key Activities

You're looking at the core engine room of Coinbase Global, Inc. (COIN) operations as of late 2025. These aren't just tasks; they are the massive, measurable activities that define the company's market position and future value.

Maintaining a compliant, secure, and high-uptime trading platform is foundational, especially given the regulatory scrutiny. The platform's operational health is tracked closely, with recent uptime figures showing commitment to availability.

  • - Coinbase Developer Platform uptime was reported at 100% for September 2025.
  • - Uptime for the Developer Platform dipped slightly to 99.94% in October 2025.
  • - The platform served 8.7 million Monthly Transacting Users (MTUs) in Q2 2025.
  • - Total trading volume on Coinbase in Q2 2025 reached $425 billion.
  • - Institutional customers drove $194 billion of the Q2 2025 trading volume.
  • - Coinbase custodies over 12% of the circulating Bitcoin supply.

Developing and scaling the Base Layer 2 blockchain ecosystem represents a major strategic pivot toward becoming an application platform. The goals set for 2025 were aggressive, showing the scale of this activity.

The roadmap for Base in 2025 included targets to secure $100 billion in on-chain assets and onboard 25,000 developers by year-end. Furthermore, the network aimed to attract 25 million users and process 1 billion transactions by October 2025. The ecosystem's utility is already showing in transaction metrics from the prior year, which inform current scaling efforts.

Base Ecosystem Metric Value/Period Context
DeFi Address Activity 405,700 (Q3 2024) Up from 143,600 in Q2 2024.
Stablecoin Transfers Volume Over $415 billion (Q3 2024) Significant increase from $97.8 billion in Q2 2024.

Expanding the derivatives product suite post-Deribit acquisition is about capturing a larger share of global trading activity, moving beyond just spot markets. The acquisition itself was a massive financial commitment.

Coinbase cemented its derivatives presence by completing the acquisition of Deribit for approximately $2.9 billion (a deal structured as $700 million cash plus $2.2 billion in stock). This immediately added depth in global derivatives. The expansion into regulated US products is also yielding results.

  • - Coinbase Derivatives Exchange surpassed $1 billion in open interest for its US perpetual-style futures.
  • - Coinbase International Exchange scaled its perpetual futures listings from 15 to 106.
  • - International derivatives volume saw a 6200% increase in average daily trading volume between January and December 2024.

Securing and managing custody for $516 billion in assets reflects Coinbase's critical role as a trusted financial infrastructure provider, especially for institutions. This figure represents the total value of assets on the platform as of the end of Q3 2025.

The growth in custody is a direct indicator of institutional trust, evidenced by the Q1 2025 figure for Assets under custody reaching $420 billion. This activity feeds directly into the Subscription and Services revenue stream, which was $747 million in Q3 2025, up 14% Quarter-over-Quarter.

Engaging in regulatory advocacy and compliance globally requires significant financial outlay to shape the operating environment. Coinbase is actively involved in lobbying for clear frameworks, such as the CLARITY Act.

The broader crypto industry spent over $18.4 million on federal lobbying in the first half of 2025 alone. Coinbase's direct lobbying spend was disclosed at $970,000 for Q2 2025, following a reported spend of $2.9 million in 2023. The company actively opposed the SEC's 2025 budget proposal, which included $812.4 million earmarked for enforcement, out of a total proposal of $2.6 billion.

Finance: draft the Q4 2025 lobbying expense projection by next Tuesday.

Coinbase Global, Inc. (COIN) - Canvas Business Model: Key Resources

You're looking at the core assets that let Coinbase Global, Inc. operate and compete in late 2025. The foundation is undeniably its balance sheet strength and regulatory positioning in the US market.

The firm ended the third quarter of 2025 with a very strong liquidity profile, ending that period with $11.9 billion in USD resources on hand, plus another $2.6 billion in long-term crypto investments. This capital base supports ongoing development and acquisitions, like the May 2025 purchase of Deribit for approximately $2.9 billion (cash plus stock). This financial muscle is a key resource in a volatile sector.

The platform's scale is another critical asset, built on years of user acquisition and technological investment. Here's a breakdown of the most tangible resources:

  • - Trusted brand and regulatory compliance in the US and globally; the company became a member of the S&P 500 in May 2025.
  • - Proprietary, scalable trading and custody technology infrastructure, including the Base layer-2 network which processed 1.5 billion transactions in November 2025 alone.
  • - Strong liquidity position with $11.9 billion in USD resources as of Q3 2025.
  • - Large, verified user base, estimated at around 120 million total monthly users in 2025, with 8.7 million Monthly Transacting Users (MTUs) reported in Q2 2025.
  • - Intellectual property related to blockchain and crypto financial services, exemplified by the late October 2025 unveiling of the x402 protocol for AI-enabled stablecoin payments.

To give you a clearer picture of the scale of these resources as of the latest reported figures, look at this snapshot:

Resource Metric Value (Late 2025 Data) Context/Period
USD Resources (Cash & Equivalents) $11.9 billion End of Q3 2025
Total Monthly Users 120 million As of 2025
Monthly Transacting Users (MTUs) 8.7 million Q2 2025
Assets on Platform (Total) $516 billion End of Q3 2025
Base Network Transactions 1.5 billion November 2025
USDC Held in Coinbase Products (Average) $15 billion Q3 2025

Also, consider the scope of their product reach. They manage relationships with 245,000 ecosystem partners across 100+ countries. Plus, their derivatives expansion, driven partly by the Deribit close, helped drive roughly $840 billion in derivatives volume in Q3.

The shift in focus toward institutional and developer tools is also a key intangible asset. The development of x402, which embeds payment authorization standards into HTTP headers, shows a deep investment in future payment rails, aiming for sub-second latency in AI-to-AI transactions. That's a defintely valuable IP asset.

Coinbase Global, Inc. (COIN) - Canvas Business Model: Value Propositions

You're looking at the core reasons why customers choose Coinbase Global, Inc. over the competition as of late 2025. It's about trust, breadth of service, and ecosystem integration.

  • - The most trusted and regulated on-ramp for crypto in the US. Coinbase is the largest publicly traded cryptocurrency exchange in the United States. The company continues to be the primary custodian for over 80% of U.S. BTC and ETH ETF assets as of quarter-end.
  • - Comprehensive suite: spot, derivatives, staking, and custody services. Coinbase ended Q3 2025 with $516B in total Assets on Platform, with Assets Under Custody (AUC) reaching an all-time high of $300B.
  • - High security and insurance for digital assets on the platform. In May 2025, Coinbase disclosed a cyberattack affecting under 1% of its Monthly Transacting Users (MTUs), with an estimated remediation cost between $180-$400 million.
  • - Ease of use for retail investors and institutional-grade services (Prime). Retail Consumer Trading Revenue for Q3 2025 was $844M, while Institutional Transaction Revenue hit $135M, marking a 122% quarter-over-quarter increase.
  • - Access to the Base ecosystem for developers and users. The Base ecosystem saw Total Value Locked (TVL) soar to $12B by late September 2025. In Q3 2025, the Consumer app added the ability to trade more than 40,000 assets via its decentralized exchange (DEX) integration on Base.

The sheer scale of operations supports these value propositions, especially when looking at the Q3 2025 financial snapshot.

Metric Q3 2025 Value Context/Growth
Total Quarterly Revenue $1.9B Up 25% Quarter-over-Quarter (Q/Q)
Net Income $433M Sharp increase from $75.5M in Q3 2024
Total Trading Volume $295B Up from $237B in Q2 2025
Institutional Trading Volume $236B Up 22% Q/Q
Derivatives Revenue Contribution (from Deribit) $52M Contribution from the August 14 closing
Derivatives Notional Volume (Combined) Over $840B Achieved in Q3
Staking Revenue $185M Up 28% Q/Q

The diversification into non-trading revenue streams is a key part of the current value proposition, showing resilience when spot trading volumes fluctuate.

  • Subscription and Services Revenue reached $747M in Q3 2025, up 14% Q/Q.
  • Stablecoin-related revenue contributed approximately $355M in the quarter, up 7% Q/Q.
  • Average USDC balances held in Coinbase products reached an all-time high of over $15B.

For institutional clients, the derivatives expansion following the Deribit acquisition is a major draw, cementing Coinbase as a comprehensive provider.

  • The combined entity achieved over $840B of notional derivatives trading volume in Q3.
  • Margin on institutional volume nearly doubled last quarter, partly due to the Deribit purchase accounting for $52 million in the quarter.

The Base network's growth directly feeds into the value proposition for developers and users seeking on-chain activity.

  • Average Daily Active Addresses (DAAs) on Base grew year over year from 873k to 1.2 million on a quarterly average basis.
  • The network is targeting 25 million users and $100B in on-chain assets by the end of 2025.

Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.

Coinbase Global, Inc. (COIN) - Canvas Business Model: Customer Relationships

You're looking at how Coinbase Global, Inc. manages its massive and diverse user base as of late 2025. The relationship strategy clearly splits between the high-volume, low-touch retail segment and the high-value, high-touch institutional side.

Automated, self-service platform for the vast majority of retail users

The core relationship for the majority of Coinbase Global, Inc.'s user base is digital and automated. As of 2025, the platform serves around 120 million total monthly users. However, the number of users actively transacting, or Monthly Transacting Users (MTUs), was 8.7 million in Q2 2025. This wide gap suggests that the overwhelming majority of the user base relies on the automated, self-service interface for basic functions like viewing balances, setting up recurring buys, or simple trades without direct human intervention. Coinbase last reported 108 million verified users by the end of 2024, illustrating the scale this automated system must support. The platform's listing of over 270 cryptocurrencies as of mid-2025 further necessitates a self-service model for navigation and asset management.

Dedicated, white-glove service for high-priority/institutional traders

For institutional clients, the relationship shifts to a dedicated, high-touch model, which is critical given their transaction size. In Q2 2025, institutional customers accounted for a trading volume of $236 billion, representing an 81.86% share of total trades on the platform. This segment is clearly prioritized for bespoke service. Coinbase Institutional reports that 40% of the world's largest hedge funds have onboarded, and the firm was chosen as custodian for 8 out of the 11 US Bitcoin ETFs, holding 81% of all ETF assets. The institutional transaction revenue in Q3 2025 hit $135 million, more than double the figure from Q2 2025, underscoring the high-value nature of these relationships. This white-glove service likely includes dedicated account management, complex financing options, and specialized custody solutions, such as the one supporting the $516 billion in total Assets on Platform at the end of Q3 2025.

Metric Retail Segment (Consumer) Institutional Segment
Q3 2025 Transaction Revenue $844 million $135 million
Q2 2025 Trading Volume Implied ~$61 billion (Total $295B - $236B Insto) $236 billion
Q2 2025 Trading Volume Share Implied ~18.14% (Based on Q2 data) 81.86%
User Count Context (Q2 2025) 8.7 million MTUs 40% of world's largest hedge funds onboarded

Coinbase One subscription offering zero-fee trading and enhanced support

The Coinbase One subscription is the primary mechanism for deepening the relationship with engaged retail users by offering tangible benefits for a recurring fee. Estimates suggest the Coinbase One subscriber base reached approximately 1 million users in 2025, up from exceeding 600,000 members across 42 countries at one point in 2024. This program is a key part of the shift toward recurring revenue, with Subscription and Services Revenue hitting $747 million in Q3 2025. The service has evolved, with the Basic tier launching in Q2 2025 at $4.99 per month, making the zero-fee trading proposition more accessible. The value proposition includes zero-fee trading (for standard spot trading on certain tiers), staking reward boosts, and enhanced support, directly addressing common friction points for active retail traders.

  • Coinbase One Subscriber Estimate (2025): ~1 million users.
  • Coinbase One Basic Tier Price: $4.99/month.
  • Q3 2025 Subscription & Services Revenue: $747 million.
  • Stablecoin Revenue Contribution (Q3 2025): $355 million.

Proactive communication on regulatory changes and security updates

Managing trust is paramount, especially following security events and in a heavily regulated industry. Coinbase Global, Inc. had to engage in proactive communication following a cyberattack disclosed in May 2025, which affected <1% of its Monthly Transacting Users (MTUs) and carried an estimated remediation cost of up to $400 million. Communicating the incident response and system hardening efforts is a direct relationship management function. Furthermore, the company actively communicates its stance and updates regarding regulatory shifts, such as its inclusion in the S&P 500 in May 2025, which signals legitimacy to the broader financial community. The ongoing SEC probe regarding historical 'verified users' metrics also necessitates careful, proactive communication to maintain user confidence in reporting integrity. Finance: draft the Q4 2025 security and regulatory update summary by next Tuesday.

Coinbase Global, Inc. (COIN) - Canvas Business Model: Channels

You're looking at how Coinbase Global, Inc. actually gets its value proposition-secure, accessible crypto finance-into the hands of its diverse customer base as of late 2025. The channels are a mix of direct digital interfaces, specialized institutional portals, a growing physical/spending layer, and an entire Layer 2 ecosystem.

Coinbase App and Website (primary retail access)

This is the front door for the vast majority of retail users. The platform saw its total monthly users reach 120 million across its platforms in 2025, a roughly 25% year-on-year growth from 96 million in 2024. That said, the number of users who actually transact in a given month-the Monthly Transacting Users (MTUs)-is much smaller; Q2 2025 reported 8.7 million MTUs. The U.S. market remains a stronghold, where Coinbase retains a dominant share of spot trading volume, over 50% as of early 2025. Total quarterly trading volume in Q3 2025 was $295 billion, up 24% quarter-over-quarter. Consumer spot trading volume specifically for Q3 2025 was $59.00 billion. The Subscription and Services revenue stream, which includes many direct-to-consumer offerings, climbed to around $746.7 million in Q3 2025.

Coinbase Prime (direct sales channel for institutions)

Coinbase Prime serves the institutional segment, offering brokerage, custody, and prime services. This channel is critical for high-volume activity. In Q3 2025, institutional customers accounted for a trading volume of $236.00 billion. Following the August 2025 acquisition of Deribit, Coinbase collectively achieved over $840 billion of notional derivatives trading volume with Deribit in Q3 2025. The total Assets on Platform (custodied assets) ended Q3 2025 at $516.00 billion, showing the scale of assets flowing through its institutional infrastructure. The company is also accelerating stablecoin adoption for treasury and payments, with average USDC balances held in Coinbase products hitting an all-time high of over $15 billion in Q3 2025.

Coinbase One Card (physical/digital debit card for spending)

This channel bridges crypto holdings with everyday spending, tied directly to the Coinbase One membership program. The Coinbase One Card, a credit card issued by First Electronic Bank on the American Express network, is set for a Fall 2025 launch. Eligibility requires a Coinbase One membership, which has approximately 1 million subscribers as of 2025. The card offers tiered Bitcoin rewards, up to 4% back on eligible purchases, though the base rate is 2% if Assets on Coinbase (AOC) are under $10,000. The basic annual membership cost is $49.99/year. For members who meet the top tier, the 4% back breaks even on the membership cost with only about $1,250 in annual spend. Furthermore, members receive perks like up to $10 per month in Base gas credits.

Base Layer 2 Network (ecosystem for developers and dApps)

Base acts as an ecosystem channel, attracting developers and decentralized applications (dApps) directly into the Coinbase orbit. As of late November 2025, the Total Value Locked (TVL) on the network was reported at $14.37 billion, though an August 2025 report cited a figure near $4.5 billion. The network boasts 596,000 daily active users, generating approximately $500,000 daily from its applications alone. Over 25,000 developers are building on the platform, which is designed to offer low-cost, high-speed transactions fully compatible with Ethereum. Daily transactions on its decentralized exchanges reached $855 million in late 2025.

Here's a quick look at the scale across these key distribution points as of late 2025:

Channel Component Key Metric Value (Late 2025/Q3 2025)
Coinbase App/Website (Retail) Total Monthly Users 120 million
Coinbase App/Website (Retail) Monthly Transacting Users (Q2 2025) 8.7 million
Coinbase Prime (Institutional) Q3 2025 Trading Volume $236.00 billion
Coinbase Prime (Institutional) Total Assets on Platform (Q3 2025) $516.00 billion
Coinbase One Card Coinbase One Subscribers Approx. 1 million
Base Layer 2 Network Total Value Locked (TVL) $14.37 billion
Base Layer 2 Network Daily Application Earnings Approx. $500,000

The Coinbase One membership itself bundles several channel benefits; for instance, it includes up to $10 per month in Base gas credits, directly connecting the subscription service to the Layer 2 channel. Also, the Subscription and Services revenue for Q3 2025 was $746.7 million, showing the financial contribution from these non-trading channels.

Coinbase Global, Inc. (COIN) - Canvas Business Model: Customer Segments

You're looking at the customer base for Coinbase Global, Inc. (COIN) as of late 2025, and honestly, it's a tale of two very different user groups-the everyday trader and the massive financial entity. The platform has clearly evolved past just being a simple exchange.

Retail Investors: Novice to experienced crypto buyers and sellers

This segment remains the volume engine, though the focus is shifting toward more stable revenue streams. As of the second quarter of 2025, Coinbase reported 8.7 million Monthly Transacting Users (MTUs). That's the number of people who actually traded in a 28-day period. To give you a sense of scale, the total verified user count is estimated to be around 120 million across the platform in 2025. Retail activity is still significant, but its share of the action is shrinking relative to institutions. For instance, in Q2 2025, retail trades accounted for about 6.6% of the total trading volume on the platform. However, when you look at transaction revenue specifically for Q3 2025, retail brought in $844 million, which was over 80% of the total trading revenue for that quarter, showing they still drive the transaction fee base. The company is definitely leaning into its subscription services, like Coinbase One, partly to stabilize revenue against the inherent choppiness of retail trading.

Institutional Investors: Hedge funds, asset managers, and corporations

This is where the durable revenue story is being written. Coinbase Institutional, or Coinbase Prime, is securing massive amounts of client assets. As of the second quarter of 2025, Assets Under Custody (AUC) specifically for institutional clients stood at $245.7 billion. This trust is built on their regulated status. For example, Coinbase Custody is the custodian for 9 out of 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs and 8 out of 9 spot Ethereum ETFs approved in the U.S. as of early 2025. Trading volume from this segment is substantial, hitting $236 billion in Q3 2025, which generated $135 million in transaction revenue that quarter. The total Assets on Platform (AOP) across all clients ended Q3 2025 at $516 billion. This segment is key to the subscription and services revenue growth, which hit $747 million in Q3 2025.

Here's a quick look at the institutional activity metrics we have for 2025:

Metric Q2 2025 Value Q3 2025 Value
Institutional Trading Volume $194 billion $236 billion
Institutional Transaction Revenue $61 million $135 million
Institutional Custody (AUC) $245.7 billion (Q2 only) N/A

Developers: Building on the Base Layer 2 network

The Base Layer 2 network is a distinct customer segment, comprised of the builders creating decentralized applications (dApps) and infrastructure. The ambition here is clear: Coinbase set a roadmap target to onboard 25,000 developers by the end of 2025. While they had 4,287 active developers in 2024, the growth trajectory is steep, with over 1,600 developers onboarded within Base's first year. This ecosystem is scaling transaction throughput rapidly; Base processed 1.5 billion transactions in November 2025 alone, exceeding its earlier goal of 1 billion transactions by October 2025. This activity is what drives utility for the next two segments.

Government Entities: Seeking secure custody for digital assets

While not a high-volume trading segment, government entities represent a critical trust anchor. Coinbase Global, Inc. (COIN) custodies crypto assets seized by the U.S. Marshals Service. This relationship validates their security posture for the most risk-averse clients. Furthermore, the demand for compliance and surveillance tools is growing; government requests for data on the platform rose 19% in Q3 2025, reaching 12,000 requests. This indicates an increasing reliance on Coinbase's infrastructure for regulatory and legal purposes.

Asset Issuers: Utilizing Coinbase Custody for Spot ETF products

This group is tightly linked to the Institutional segment but focuses specifically on the regulated product wrapper layer. As mentioned, Coinbase Custody is the trusted custodian for the vast majority of regulated crypto investment products. They hold the keys for 9 out of 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs and 8 out of 9 spot ETH ETFs. This business line directly feeds the recurring custody fee revenue, which is a cornerstone of the company's strategy to de-risk from volatile trading fees. The success here is directly measurable by the number of major asset managers choosing Coinbase over competitors for their regulated fund structures.

Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.

Coinbase Global, Inc. (COIN) - Canvas Business Model: Cost Structure

You're looking at the expense side of Coinbase Global, Inc.'s operations as of late 2025, which is where the rubber meets the road for profitability, especially given the high fixed-cost nature of running a major exchange.

Total Q3 2025 operating expenses came in at $1.4 billion, which was actually a decrease of 9% quarter-over-quarter, even as revenue surged. That drop of $134 million Q/Q shows some cost discipline was in place during that period.

The bulk of the spending is concentrated in the core operational areas, which you can see clearly broken down for the third quarter:

Expense Category Q3 2025 Amount (Millions USD)
Technology and development expenses $431 million
General and administrative costs $418 million
Sales and marketing expenses $260 million
Total of the above three categories $1.1 billion

That combined $1.1 billion for Technology & development, General & administrative, and Sales & marketing represented a 14% collective increase quarter-over-quarter. The main driver here was headcount growth; full-time employees ended Q3 2025 at 4,795, up 12% sequentially.

For platform maintenance and future-proofing, technology and development expenses were $431 million in Q3 2025. This spend is definitely tied to scaling the platform and supporting new initiatives like the Base network, plus absorbing personnel costs from recent additions.

General and administrative costs settled at $418 million for the quarter. This bucket is where you'd find significant legal and regulatory spend, which is a constant, non-negotiable cost of doing business in this sector, especially as Coinbase navigates the evolving global compliance landscape.

Driving user acquisition and engagement, sales and marketing expenses were $260 million in Q3 2025. This spend is directly linked to growing the user base and promoting services like Coinbase One subscriptions.

The integration of recent acquisitions is a clear cost factor. The Deribit acquisition, which closed in August 2025, contributed $30 million to total operating expenses in Q3 2025. This $30 million figure includes $16 million recognized as deal-related amortization.

Looking ahead to Q4 2025, the outlook for Tech & Dev and G&A combined was projected to be in the range of $925 million to $975 million. Coinbase noted that approximately half of that expected sequential increase was due to the recent acquisitions of Deribit and Echo.

  • Technology and development expenses were $431.0 million in Q3 2025.
  • General and administrative costs were $418.4 million in Q3 2025.
  • Sales and marketing expenses were $260.3 million in Q3 2025.
  • Total operating expenses for Q3 2025 were $1.4 billion.
  • Deribit contributed $30 million to Q3 2025 operating expenses.

Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.

Coinbase Global, Inc. (COIN) - Canvas Business Model: Revenue Streams

You're looking at the engine room of Coinbase Global, Inc.'s profitability as of late 2025, specifically focusing on the third quarter results. Honestly, the shift from pure trading fees to a more diversified services model is the story here.

The revenue streams are clearly segmented, showing where the money is actually coming from across their platform offerings. Here's the quick math on the major components from the Q3 2025 report:

  • - Transaction Revenue: Fees from trading, totaling $1.05 billion in Q3 2025.
  • - Subscription and Services Revenue: $747 million in Q3 2025.
  • - Stablecoin Revenue: Interest income from USDC reserves, which was $355 million in Q3 2025.
  • - Staking Revenue: This component, part of the broader services, brought in $185 million in Q3 2025.
  • - Custody and Partner Ecosystem Fees: This specific segment of services revenue totaled $143 million in Q3 2025.

To give you a clearer picture of the scale, Coinbase Global, Inc. reported total revenue of $1.87 billion for Q3 2025. The platform ended that quarter with $516 billion in total Assets on Platform.

Let's break down those Subscription and Services Revenue components a bit further, because that's where the growth story is getting interesting, especially with stablecoins and staking yield.

Revenue Component Q3 2025 Amount (USD) Quarter-over-Quarter Change
Total Subscription and Services Revenue $747 million Up 14%
Stablecoin Revenue (Interest Income) $355 million Up 7%
Blockchain Rewards Revenue (Staking) $185 million Up 28%
Custody and Partner Ecosystem Revenue $143 million Up 19%

The growth in transaction revenue was heavily influenced by trading volumes. Total Q3 Trading Volume was $295 billion. You see that retail transaction revenue hit $844 million, which was up 30% quarter-over-quarter. Institutional transaction revenue was $135 million, which was up a massive 122% quarter-over-quarter, partly due to the recent Deribit acquisition contributing $52 million of that revenue in Q3.

On the stablecoin front, the underlying asset is growing significantly. In Q3, USDC reached an all-time high of $74 billion in market capitalization. Furthermore, average USDC balances held in Coinbase products reached an all-time high of over $15 billion.

The services side is definitely showing momentum, which is key for long-term stability. You can see the focus on scaling payments through USDC adoption and growing the staking yield. If onboarding takes 14+ days, churn risk rises, but the underlying product adoption seems strong. Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.


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