Coinbase, the publicly traded crypto company, is pushing the envelope when it comes to product innovation. Jesse Pollak, the head of protocols at Coinbase, spoke recently at ETH Denver about the company’s investment in Base, an Ethereum layer-2 sandbox for decentralized applications.
According to Pollak, the history of Coinbase has been “very trading-centric” over the past 10 years, but the company aims to change that with Base. Base is a platform that makes it easy for developers to build useful products on an on-chain platform and for users to access those products through interfaces like Coinbase and Coinbase Wallet.
Coinbase launched Base in January 2023, along with several high-profile blockchain companies, including Chainlink, Etherscan, and Aave.
Despite the lackluster rollout of its NFT marketplace, Coinbase continues to innovate and iterate quickly, Pollak said. The company launched an NFT marketplace in April 2022 to help people from the off-chain world access NFTs, learn about them, and participate in the emerging economy. While the initial version of the product did not work as well as they had hoped, Pollak said they have been iterating quickly over the past year, and they are now seeing more signs of life and growth in the marketplace.
Coinbase’s Investment in Asset Management
Coinbase also announced the acquisition of One River Management, a digital asset management firm, which the cryptocurrency exchange plans to roll into its new Coinbase asset management business line. Pollak says this will help Coinbase bring in new customers as a registered investment advisor.
“That’s our mission; that’s why we’re here,” Pollak said. “We’re here to create useful applications that can be globally available that increase economic freedom and bring billions of people into a better way of living.”
Coinbase Wallet Features
In January, Coinbase added new features to its Coinbase Wallet, including transaction previews, token approval alerts, a blocklist of flagged dApps, and a spam token manager that automatically hides malicious airdrops. These updates to Coinbase Wallet show that the company is still dedicated to creating innovative products that are useful for users.
Coinbase’s Commitment to Innovation
For Pollak, Coinbase’s experience with the NFT marketplace is indicative of the company’s culture of innovation. Coinbase takes big bets on big projects like NFTs, Base, and USDC, and it is not afraid to fail.
“We’re here to push the envelope and make bold moves,” Pollak said. “We’re not always going to get it right, but we’re going to keep trying.”
Coinbase’s commitment to innovation is essential to its success. The company has been at the forefront of the crypto industry for over a decade, and it continues to push the boundaries of what is possible. Coinbase’s investment in Base and the acquisition of One River Management show that the company is willing to make big moves to stay ahead of the competition.
Conclusion
Coinbase’s recent initiatives demonstrate the company’s commitment to innovation and its willingness to take risks. While its NFT marketplace may not have been as successful as the company had hoped, Coinbase is still iterating quickly and working to make it a success. The launch of Base and the acquisition of One River Management show that Coinbase is still dedicated to creating new and innovative products that are useful for users. As the crypto industry continues to evolve, Coinbase’s commitment to innovation will be essential to its success.
