Towards the end of traditional brokers? The crypto exchange Coinbase makes a big move

The crypto winter has always had its hidden virtues. Under the snow, mushrooms resist. Stablecoins, for example, grow silently while prices tumble. Coinbase, for its part, has perfectly understood the lesson. While the market mourns its lost illusions, the American giant is preparing a major counter-attack. Not just a simple cosmetic update. A major strategic move, a historic turning point. Enough to seriously shake traditional brokers at their most solid bases.

Yahoo Finance becomes the antechamber of the crypto exchange Coinbase

First, the idea is devastatingly simple for the competition. The centralized crypto exchange (CEX) Coinbase has acquired the services of the giant Yahoo Finance. Not for basic advertising or a few poorly placed banners. For a “one-click trade” that radically changes the game. You are calmly reading an analysis on Apple. Suddenly, the magic button appears before your eyes. You click instinctively.

You are now in the Coinbase universe, ready to buy without the slightest friction. In fractional shares if you wish, with dollars or USDC, your choice. Commission-free, twenty-four hours a day, five days a week. 

Yahoo Finance, let us recall, attracts one hundred and fifty million visitors every month. A providential boon for the exchange. Brian Armstrong, the charismatic boss, celebrates on X:

The universal exchange grows.

The message is absolutely clear: financial information is no longer separate from action. They permanently merge. Traditional brokers, still, offer apps that shut down at 5:30 p.m. Their fate is sealed.

Robinhood in the crosshairs: the war of total applications is now launched

Next, let’s carefully observe the prime target of this offensive. Robinhood had quietly nibble away at crypto exchanges’ territory in recent years. Coinbase now returns the favor, and with the accrued interests. Today, both apps offer exactly the same service: stocks, ETFs, crypto, commission-free, in fractions, twenty-four hours a day.

But Coinbase has two major aces up its sleeve. First, the perfect integration with Yahoo Finance, which daily attracts the curious. Second, the stablecoin ecosystem cleverly built around USDC. Purchases can be funded directly in stablecoins.

Coinbase One members earn substantial rewards on their reserves. The user no longer has any valid reason to leave this enclosed garden. They will even be able, in the near future, to use their shares as collateral for innovative onchain loans. 

Meanwhile, traditional banking apps seem from another century. They timidly open in the morning, abruptly close in the evening, and especially do not talk crypto. The gap becomes truly abyssal.

Tokenization in sight: Coinbase’s real bet to dominate global finance

Finally, this great media deployment is only a solid foundation. Coinbase looks much further than the mere present. The official statement states without detour:

In the future, Coinbase plans to offer tokenized stocks.

Concrete translation: stocks will become programmable tokens. They will be able to freely travel on a blockchain. Be traded twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Serve as collateral in decentralized lending protocols. Be sent as instant payments from one side of the planet to the other.

Nasdaq and NYSE are working hard on this hot topic. But Coinbase starts with a considerable head start. It already has the crypto infrastructure, loyal users, and regulator trust for stablecoins. Brian Armstrong does not want to be king of crypto exchanges. He proclaimed himself: “We will not stop until Coinbase is the number one financial app worldwide“. Traditional brokers are now warned. Their century-old model is dangerously wavering.

Coinbase’s major move in significant numbers

• 6,000 stocks and ETFs available at launch, soon 8,000;
• 150 million monthly visitors for Yahoo Finance, converted into entrants;
• 24/5: stock trading operates uninterrupted, five days a week;
• 1 dollar is enough to buy a fraction of a stock, thanks to the share system;
• USDC: stablecoins become the natural gateway between crypto and traditional finance.

Last year, Kraken unveiled its xStocks service on the European market. American tokenized stocks arrived in France and elsewhere as early as December. The machine is definitely running. Coinbase is accelerating the pace even more. The boundaries between crypto and traditional finance erase a little more each day. Brokers who do not evolve will be irreparably swept away.