Coinbase Review

Coinbase Review

It is likely that everyone who participates in crypto is aware of Coinbase. Coinbase is an old name in cryptocurrency and is one of the most user friendly and secure exchanges available. In this article we will be taking a look at Coinbase.

A Brief History of Coinbase

Coinbase was founded in June of 2012 by former Airbnb engineer Brian Armstrong, who soon after partnered with cofounder and former trader for Goldman Sachs Fred Ehrsam. Coinbase takes its name from the transactions which introduce Proof of Work cryptocurrencies into circulation. These are respectively referred to as coinbase transactions. In October 2012, Coinbase launched their initial service, allowing users to buy and sell Bitcoin through bank transfers.

By 2014, Coinbase had already grown to one million users, making it one of the fastest growing exchanges in history. Coinbase had also acquired blockchain explorer service Blockr as well as the web bookmarking company Kippt within that same year. Furthermore, the exchange acquired insurance for the value of all the Bitcoin on their servers and launched their Vault system for secure Bitcoin storage around that same time. 2014 was an incredibly bullish year for not only Coinbase itself, but for the corporate adoption of cryptocurrency in general, which was majorly fueled by Coinbase. Overstock.com, Dell, Expedia Dish Network and Time inc. all partnered with Coinbase that year to begin accepting Bitcoin as payment for their services.

Only one year later – in 2015 – Coinbase launched its U.S. based Bitcoin exchange, known as the Coinbase Exchange. By 2017 Coinbase had obtained their BitLicense – a business license issued by the NYSDFS which is required to participate in virtual currency exchange activities within the U.S. – allowing the exchange to trade Ethereum and Litecoin alongside Bitcoin.

Coinbase IPO

Coinbase held an IPO in January of 2021. The exchange was listed on the NASDAQ under the ticker symbol COIN. This is so far the only instance of a cryptocurrency exchange being publicly traded in the stock market.

Security Features of Coinbase

Coinbase utilizes the industry’s best practices, such as storing 97% of its Bitcoin in encrypted, geographically separated, offline storage. The remaining three percent – which is kept in hot wallets to facilitate quick trading – is fully insured against theft. This is a common practice amongst large exchanges, such as the KuCoin, Kraken and Crypto.com exchanges.

Coinbase Pro users in the United States have the added security benefit of Coinbase’s FDIC insurance. This means that any U.S. currency which users are holding in their Coinbase Pro accounts is federally insured by the government. FDIC insures each individual depositor for up to $250,000. Even though this only applies to United States customers’ deposits of U.S. dollars, it is still an added layer of security. As we all know, there is no such thing as too much security when it comes to financial matters.

One of the greatest testaments to the security of Coinbase is the number of companies and hedge funds who entrust their crypto holdings with the exchange. In fact, 10% of the top 100 hedge funds by assets under management are among Coinbase’s clients. Coinbase even safeguards crypto for – the digital asset management giant – Grayscale Trust. Coinbase holds Bitcoin for companies such as Tesla and Square among others. If companies such as these are willing to trust Coinbase’s security, then it is a pretty good bet that they can be trusted with your personal crypto.

Coinbase Pro Trading Engine

The Coinbase Pro trading engine and accompanying toolbox of features is amongst the best in the industry. Coinbase’s cloud-based charting software and trading interface goes above and beyond the standard set by many other exchanges. The suite of features and charting indicators that come with a Coinbase Pro account are some of the key selling points for the exchange.

Coinbase Fees

It is free to set up a Coinbase or Coinbase Pro account. Coinbase utilizes the standard maker and taker fee model for determining trading fees. When you place an order at the market price that gets filled immediately, you are considered a taker and will pay a fee between 0.04% and 0.50%. When you place an order which is not immediately matched by an existing order, that order is placed on the order book. If another customer places an order that matches yours, you are considered the maker and will pay a fee between 0.00% and 0.50%.

Coinbase Maker and Taker Fees are Calculated as such:

In Conclusion

Coinbase is a great all-around exchange. Coinbase is incredibly user friendly and comes with a high degree of security. Coinbase continues to progress the mainstream adoption of cryptocurrency forward on a regular basis and we see no signs of them slowing down in the years to come!

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