Coinbase is executing an aggressive 2026 roadmap to evolve into a single financial interface that combines crypto, tokenized real‑world assets and on‑chain services, CEO Brian Armstrong has outlined. The plan places stablecoin growth and on‑chain adoption at the center of that push.
The strategy rests on three pillars: a global “Everything Exchange,” scaling stablecoins and payments, and accelerating on‑chain activity through the Base ecosystem and developer tools. Each pillar aims to diversify revenue beyond trading and to position Coinbase against both fintech incumbents and crypto‑native rivals.
Stablecoins are presented as foundational infrastructure for remittances, payroll and settlement. Company materials cited projections that the stablecoin market could reach $1.2 trillion to $2 trillion by 2028, and Coinbase has been expanding USDC use cases, including on‑chain lending programs advertising yields up to 10.8% APY.
Regulation, however, complicates the path. Coinbase has signalled a hard line on certain proposals: Armstrong described reopening the GENIUS Act as a “red line,” and the company said it would be prepared to delist Tether if U.S. law required full Treasury backing.
Regional rules already in force or recently implemented—MiCA in the EU and Hong Kong’s stablecoin licensing framework—create both compliance demands and opportunities for cross‑jurisdiction strategy.
Stablecoins and payments as Coinbase core infrastructure
Coinbase is prioritizing on‑chain growth via Base, its Ethereum Layer‑2, and an integrated developer platform. Base is framed as the scalability and cost foundation for dApps, payments and tokenized services; the company reported Base achieved 30x revenue growth in 2025</strong), illustrating early traction for enterprise and consumer use cases. Coinbase is also pushing a “single on‑chain identity” concept to simplify access across decentralized applications, which it argues will lower the user‑experience barrier to on‑chain economic activity.
The company has paired these technical efforts with product integrations—on‑app on‑chain swaps, Solana DEX settlement in USDC and tokenization tooling—to bridge custodial convenience and native on‑chain flows. Critics have flagged execution and security issues; Coinbase says it mitigates those concerns with isolated fund storage and expanded cold‑storage practices, emphasising a regulatory‑first approach.
Analysts including Deutsche Bank have framed the Everything Exchange thesis as a substantial growth vector for 2026, with Coinbase diversifying into equities, commodities and prediction markets alongside crypto. That expansion, supported by partnerships and bank pilots, aims to attract institutional flows and reduce dependence on volatile trading volumes.
Investors are now turning their attention to Coinbase’s 2026 execution and the pace of USDC adoption, which will serve as the ultimate test for the company’s claim to become a global financial super app. If Coinbase delivers sustained stablecoin utility, developer engagement on Base, and compliant tokenization pilots.
