Coinbase: The Standard in Crypto Custody

For over 12 years, Coinbase Institutional has safeguarded digital assets at scale, earning the trust of leading banks, asset managers, hedge funds, and institutions worldwide. Security is the foundation of everything we do—every product, service, and innovation is underpinned by rigorous, institutional-grade features.

Our in-house technology secures 12% of total crypto market cap, and our custody footprint rivals the world’s largest traditional custodians. Institutions need more than secure storage – they need a trusted partner with the infrastructure, compliance framework, and crypto-first capabilities to support their evolving digital asset strategies.

Coinbase’s Custody Priorities:

• Unparalleled Security: Built on cutting-edge encryption, physical safeguards, and multifactor controls to eliminate single points of compromise.

• Continuous Operation & Scale: Always-on infrastructure allows us to process transactions 24/7/365, meeting the evolving demands of global markets.

• Industry-Leading Insurance: Maintaining one of the largest and most robust commercial crime insurance policies of any crypto platform.

• Global Reach & Trust: Servicing institutions across diverse jurisdictions with robust regulatory compliance frameworks.

• Crypto-First Platform: Supporting over 40 blockchains across hundreds of assets, seamlessly integrating custodial staking and enabling DeFi participation via Prime Onchain Wallet.

Whether safeguarding assets for crypto ETFs, meeting a hedge fund’s operational SLAs, or enabling banks and brokers to offer crypto services, Coinbase delivers for crypto strategies. Through Prime Onchain Wallet, we offer institutional-grade, non-custodial access to millions of assets with purpose-built security controls, API-based access for workflow automation, and onchain access across Ethereum, Base, EVM networks, and Solana.

Key Management Built for Scale

Coinbase Institutional leverages multiparty computation (MPC), a cryptographic breakthrough ensuring private keys are never fully assembled nor at rest or at use. By distributing key shares across multiple secure environments, MPC eliminates single points of compromise while enabling faster, more efficient withdrawals.

In a continued commitment to transparency and trust, on March 27, 2025, Coinbase open-sourced its MPC cryptography library, which underpins our secure and decentralized approach to key management. This release enables independent validation, enhances transparency, and reinforces the security architecture that institutions rely on.

Beyond MPC, Coinbase adheres to best-in-class security practices:

• Geographic Distribution of Key Shares – Mitigates centralized risk.

• Diverse Technology Stacks – Enhances overall security resilience.

• Strict Segregation of Duties & Least-Privilege Access – Minimizes human error and insider threats.

• Physical Security Controls – Protect against unauthorized access or tampering.

All of these measures are thoroughly audited and included in our SOC 1 and SOC 2 reports, reinforcing our commitment to institutional-grade protection.

In addition, Coinbase is the first crypto custodian to deploy Cross Domain Solution (CDS) systems—a security technology endorsed by the US NSA and the UK NCSC for military and critical infrastructure—further solidifying our leadership in secure custody.

Purpose-Built Security Model

Digital asset custody demands far more than a simple adaptation of traditional finance. It requires specialized infrastructure, regulatory expertise, and multi-layered security tailored to the unique complexities of blockchain technology. Coinbase’s model includes:

• MPC & Decentralized Wallet Strategy

  • MPC ensures that full private keys are never stored at rest, nor in any single machine during signing and when in use. Instead, key shares are distributed across multiple secure environments, preventing the private key from ever being fully reconstructed.

• In-House Security Infrastructure

  • All security-critical software is designed, built and maintained in-house, eliminating reliance on external providers that may introduce vulnerabilities.

• Offline Cold Storage with Military-Grade Isolation

  • Coinbase is the first digital asset custodian to deploy CDS, a technology designed for military and high-level government applications. Our air-gapped cold storage remains fully offline. This ensures sensitive keys are out of reach from external threats or exploits.

• Automated Risk & Integrity Analysis

  • Every transaction undergoes automated checks to verify recipient addresses, detect tampering, and identify anomalies before execution, ensuring transaction integrity.

Always On: Fast Transactions, 24/7 Access

Crypto markets move around the clock, so Coinbase is built for continuous operation. Transactions process every day of the year—including weekends and holidays—ensuring institutions have immediate access to their assets. This always-on model delivers the speed, predictability, and certainty required to execute in today’s 24/7 global markets.

The Future of Institutional Custody

Coinbase is setting the industry standard for how institutions securely custody digital assets at scale. We’ve demonstrated that speed, security, and compliance can coexist, offering robust, seamless custody solutions to meet the needs of institutions. As crypto adoption accelerates, the right infrastructure, regulatory expertise, and security are paramount. The next era of institutional custody requires a trusted partner—and Coinbase is committed to leading the way.