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Coinbase's primary function isn't to supplant blockchain transaction volume, it's to provide a fiat gateway to acquiring cryptocurrency. Transaction throughput
by beaner 6y ago
Coinbase's primary function isn't to supplant blockchain transaction volume, it's to provide a fiat gateway to acquiring cryptocurrency. Transaction throughput on ethereum only helps Coinbase, because it makes what they sell more attractive.
- tracedddd 6y agoI’m talking about DeFi - distributed exchanges, yield generating savings accounts, and collateralized loans. Additionally ERC20 stables so on and off ramps are significantly less important. I see Coinbase’s primary function as an exchange and a way to convert to dollars. Both are threatened now. They have low fees, low latency, and more usability... but will that last?
- beaner 6y agoCould be true, but the "de" in "defi" prevents it from killing Coinbase's main purpose, which is being the fiat -> crypto gateway.
- tracedddd 6y agoTrue, it is a challenge do do a decentralized on/off ramp. But it is also questionable if that’s worth $100B valuation, too, without everything else they do.
- beaner 6y agoIt probably isn't itself, but as long as they're able to provide an attractive centralized alternative to the things happening in defi, they can capture a lot of that growth. Custody, trading, wallet, etc. A successful model for Coinbase at this point is probably what Google does: let others innovate, clone the ideas once they start becoming popular, keep them under an umbrella and provide easy integration/movement among them.