US-based crypto exchange Coinbase has, in recent weeks, accelerated its plans to expand beyond America. According to the company’s spokesperson, Coinbase wants to grow its presence on all continents except Antarctica.
The spokesperson added that Coinbase’s international expansion plans would be executed in a way that the exchange is able to offer its products while being compliant with the regulations of various countries.
Coinbase Expected competitors
Coinbase has been speaking about its ambitions to spur worldwide growth for years. So if the American exchange does expand its operations into other territories, then it would be in a position to compete with the world’s largest exchange Binance, which generates ten times more trading volume than Coinbase every day.
In addition, Coinbase, which posted $2.3 billion in trading volume in the past 24 hours, would also be in direct rivalry with other similarly-sized competitors such as Cayman Islands-based Gate.io and Seychelles-based OKX.
Coinbase went public two years ago, and its stock (COIN) trades on Nasdaq. Based on the stock’s price performance on Friday, it appears that investors have welcomed the company’s move to expand to other continents. The exchange’s shares closed the day at $76.32 yesterday, posting a 13.5% increase from Thursday.
Coinbase Executives’ Opinions on US Crypto Regulations
Meanwhile, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong is confident that the increased regulatory scrutiny will benefit the exchange. Speaking at the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call last month, Armstrong said he does not agree with other crypto players who argue that the recent regulatory scrutiny is bad for the industry.
On the other hand, Coinbase Chief legal officer Paul Grewal says he is disappointed with the way US regulators, especially the Securities and Exchange Commission, have been managing the crypto space. Grewal is concerned about the Commission’s enforcement actions which he says are not helping the industry. The legal officer also wants a clear regulatory framework established.
At the start of this March, Grewal appeared before the US House Committee on Financial Services to elaborate on how regulatory clarity will benefit the industry and the consumers. He pointed to the petition that Coinbase sent to the Securities and Exchange Commission last July.