Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has filed the necessary documents to hold its IPO. Coinbase filed a draft registration with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which is the first step toward holding its initial public offering.
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Coinbase reveals plans for IPO
In a statement posted on its website, Coinbase said it confidentially submitted the draft statement with the SEC for its IPO. The cryptocurrency exchange expects its Form S-1 to go into effect following an SEC review process, subject to various conditions.
Coinbase is the biggest exchange for digital currencies in the U.S. The company was founded in 2012, and it claims that over 35 million people in more than 100 countries use its exchange to buy, sell, store, use and earn cryptocurrency. Coinbase says it has over $25 billion in assets on its platform and over $320 billion in total volume traded.
The statement revealing the plan to hold an IPO was very brief with few details. Coinbase didn't say anything about potential valuations or any other details that could affect the IPO price.
Bitcoin price remains near record high
The cryptocurrency exchange's plans come at a time when the bitcoin price smashed through previous records, beating the previous record high of under $20,000 and soaring all the way past $23,000, according to data from Coin Metrics. According to CNBC, Thursday's jump in the bitcoin price puts the cryptocurrency up more than 200% year to date.
Many high-profile investors have expressed an interest in bitcoin this year, including Stanley Druckenmiller and Paul Tudor Jones. Additionally, PayPal and Fidelity have also taken leaps into the cryptocurrency space with bitcoin.
PayPal is now allowing users to buy bitcoin on its platform, while Fidelity launched a custody business around bitcoin. Fidelity Investments CEO Abby Johnson recently said the firm's bitcoin custody business has been "incredibly successful."
Implications of Coinbase's IPO
If Coinbase does move forward with its plans for an IPO, it would move cryptocurrencies even more into the mainstream. The New York Times sees "both practical and philosophical issues" with the cryptocurrency exchange going public. The newspaper paints cryptocurrencies as "championed in particular by libertarians, anarchists and others who reject centralized control and regulation." However, that's turning out to be less and less true as bitcoin captures the attention of reputable investors like Tudor Jones and Druckenmiller.
Coinbase's last valuation was around $8 billion, based on a 2018 funding round, although it could be worth more now due to soaring crypto prices and investor appetite for tech stocks.
