As Coinbase heads for a blockbuster listing on Nasdaq, the company announces stock options for its team with each employee getting around 100 COIN shares.
As Coinbase is all set to go public ahead today on the Nasdaq exchange, the company has received a reference point for its COIN shares. As per Nasdaq and Goldman Sachs, Coinbase (COIN) stock should start trading at $250 per share.
Thus, with 266.2 million shares outstanding shares, this gives the company a valuation of $66.5 billion. Also, the reference price is usually a conservative estimate as it depends on market sentiment and public financial information. However, Coinbase has traded much high than this in the private secondary market. The current reference price is 37% lower than $343 per COIN share that Coinbase sold previously.
Also, Coinbase’s implied valuation on the FTX exchange surged to a massive $150 billion on Tuesday, April 13. This brings the pre-trading COIN share price to $600 on FTX.
Coinbase’s implied valuation is now almost $150 billion on FTX pic.twitter.com/Mo4W4KPLgJ
— Bloqport (@Bloqport) April 13, 2021
However, since the exchange is going for a direct listing instead of an IPO, the reference price is not a direct indicator of the company’s market cap. The Nasdaq announcement also notes that the reference point hints at Coinbase’s past transactions. Nasdaq said that it established the reference point in consultation with Coinbase’s financial advisors.
Besides, Nasdaq derived this reference point since Coinbase’s “COIN has not had recent sustained trading in a private placement market”. The Nasdaq announcement states:
“Please note that the reference price is NOT an offering price and nobody has purchased or sold shares at that price. The opening public price will be determined based on buy and sell orders in the opening auction on Nasdaq.”
With Making COIN Shares Public, Coinbase Becomes the First Major Crypto Business to Do It
With its direct listing on the Nasdaq exchange, Coinbase will be the first major cryptocurrency business to go public in the US. The CNBC report notes that if Coinbase pegs a valuation of $100 billion upon listing, it will be among the country’s top 85 most valuable companies.
Besides, the report also mentions that Coinbase will be the first major direct listing. It cites examples of five direct listed NYSE companies like Slack Technologies (NYSE: WORK), Palantir Technologies (NYSE: PLTR), Spotify Technology SA (NYSE: SPOT), Asana Inc (NYSE: ASAN), and Roblox Corp (NYSE: RBLX). All these companies listed on NYSE had an opening price higher by 37% from its reference price. If Coinbase follows the cue, it will value COIN share at a price of $340 with a market cap of $90 billion.
Interestingly, the company has a pleasant surprise for its employees as it heads for public listing. Coinbase announced that it is releasing $45 million in stock options to its employees Probably, each of the Coinbase employees shall get 100 COIN shares.
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