The future of money is here – and it’s crypto

Cryptocurrency isn’t just here to stay – it’s the future of money. The industry has turned the page on the unlawful behavior that distracted from its progress; compliant growth is in. Following its massive market correction, crypto is up 90% in value this year and 60% in volume in Q4. Globally, 425 million people own it and 83% of G20 countries and major financial hubs have enacted or are working toward rules that create certainty for the industry. With that kind of scale and momentum, innovation builds on itself. SEC approval of spot bitcoin ETFs could spur new growth for crypto as an asset class. But as use of crypto has grown, so has its utility – from an asset class, to driving needed updates to the century-old financial system. 

Every day, more consumers have grown up with the internet, and they expect to be able to move their money with a speed, reach, and autonomy that legacy financial institutions, and even online payment systems based on these institutions, can’t deliver. They also want to move it cheaply, without powerful institutions gating their access and charging high fees and interest rates. Today in the US, half or more of key consumers and voters are actively seeking alternatives to the current system, including 52% of adults aged 18-40, six in 10 Black Americans, and nearly half (47%) of Hispanic Americans. Crypto is helping to create a more open, more global system.

• Around the world, more than 100,000 merchants and payment rails themselves take payment in crypto, including PayPal and Visa. Among the reasons why: lower fees, higher speed, and access to new customers.

• In 2022, global onchain stablecoin transfers approached $9 trillion – more than Mastercard, Amex, and Discover combined. Stablecoins help currencies like the US dollar exist in digital form. They’re faster, more affordable, and more accessible than fiat money, but just as stable and secure. For everyday users, they offer the benefits of cash without the drawbacks. In countries with unstable governments and currencies, they offer citizens secure cross-border transactions. 

• Countries with low economic freedom, such as Argentina, Brazil, and Nigeria, have among the highest usage rates of crypto payments and adoption as share of wealth (and are among the biggest populations in the world).

• Workers living abroad use crypto to send remittances. About one in nine people globally depend on them. Crypto transfers, on average, are 96% cheaper than other transfers and take 10 minutes compared to up to 10 days.

• Global financial centers like London, Switzerland, Hong Kong, and Singapore are transforming themselves into crypto hubs to claim the jobs and talent that a more open, more global system will bring.

Crypto gives people economic freedom, ensuring access to their own money and fair participation in the economy ungated by powerful legacy institutions – enabling people to build, create, and own their work. Coinbase is on a mission to increase economic freedom for more than 1 billion people. As crypto’s uses grow, we’re focused on building the most trusted, compliant products and services, supporting other builders, and passing fair rules to make the benefits of crypto available in the US and around the world:

• Coinbase Wallet is transforming global money transfers, enabling anyone to send money anywhere in the world for free and with instant settlement. No fees, no waiting days for the money to become available.

• Base, the decentralized, open L2 incubated by Coinbase, is laying new rails toward our goal of payments that happen in less than a second, for less than a cent, and enabling anyone, anywhere to build incredible onchain apps.

• Our new International Exchange, offering both spot and perpetual futures trading, is on its way to becoming a cornerstone of the global crypto ecosystem, redefining industry standards by staying true to our roots of trust, safety, and ease of use.

• Our Go Broad, Go Deep international expansion strategy is accelerating crypto adoption around the world. We recently obtained licenses or expanded in key markets including Canada, Spain, and Bermuda, and established Ireland as our EU MiCA entity location. 

Coinbase is building a runway of clear rules, partnerships, and trusted products and infrastructure to support today’s and future innovations, from financial system updates that are now underway, to crypto’s next chapter – when 1 billion people around the world are using crypto-powered decentralized services, cloud services, and commerce, signaling that onchain is the new online.

Coinbase chose to become a public company in the US because we are committed to the market, and to compliance and transparency. For the US especially, our mission is more relevant than ever given threats to the American Dream and to the democratic values the country represents. Both can only exist when there is economic freedom. We believe the US will eventually get crypto right. In the meantime, we’ll continue to work with other countries that are moving forward and embracing crypto’s next chapter – driving a more global, open financial system. Crypto and Coinbase are only just getting started.