Coinbase, the biggest crypto exchange in the U. S. , has been on a shopping spree this year, snapping up four companies already. Their latest catch? Liquifi, a platform that helps manage tokens. The deal went down on Wednesday, but the specifics? That's hush-hush. Aklil Ibssa, the head honcho at Coinbase, isn't spilling the beans on the price tag.

Liquifi isn't new to the game. Back in 2022, they raised $5 million from some big names in the crypto world, like Katie Haun and Balaji Srinivasan. Big players like Uniswap Foundation and Ethena use Liquifi to keep track of who owns what, hand out tokens, and deal with the pesky details of taxes.

Ibssa sees this buyout as a step towards making crypto more user-friendly. He reckons managing tokens should be a breeze, not a headache. Liquifi's been compared to Carta, a platform for traditional equity deals. But not everything's smooth sailing. Liquifi's been in hot water, facing a lawsuit from a competitor, Toku, over alleged document theft. Liquifi's denying any wrongdoing, and Coinbase is standing by them, saying they've done their homework.

This isn't Coinbase's first rodeo. Earlier this year, they bought Spindl and the team behind Iron Fish, a privacy-focused blockchain. And let's not forget their whopping $2. 9 billion acquisition of Deribit, the biggest crypto company purchase in history.

But Coinbase isn't the only one making waves. Stripe, the fintech giant, recently bought Bridge, a stablecoin startup, for $1. 1 billion. They also scooped up Privy, a crypto wallet firm, though they're keeping mum about the price.

By acquiring Liquifi, Coinbase is leveling up its game, moving closer to competitors like Binance and OKX. These rivals have "launchpads" that help projects create their own cryptocurrencies. Liquifi isn't a launchpad, but it's a step towards Coinbase offering a full-service platform.

Being a publicly traded company in the U. S. and regulated by the SEC, Coinbase has to tread carefully. Ibssa admits that the current regulatory climate under President Donald Trump's administration gives them more room to make bold moves. He even says they would've gone for Liquifi even under the previous administration, but the current clarity in regulations lets them swing bigger.

CRYPTO MERGERS

Coinbase Expands with Liquifi Buyout

Continue reading...