By
Steve Muchoki
April 17th, 2024
Coinbase revealed its plans to hold a virtual Investor day on August 14. The announcement came after there appeared rumors that the crypto exchange may go for an IPO this or next year.
Leading American digital currency exchange Coinbase announced plans to hold its first-ever investor day on August 14. The event which is supposed to be held virtually is meant to facilitate a wider understanding of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology.
“This will not be a traditional investor day, but rather an opportunity to hear our perspective on the crypto economy and learn about Coinbase’s role in the ecosystem,” said Daniel Harrison, Coinbase spokesperson.
The event might be a bigger picture of the company’s plan to go for an IPO presumably this or next year. Such talks appeared yesterday but there is no official information. Events are unfolding right before us very fast, especially in the crypto space this year. Earlier in the year, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse was quoted saying:
“In the next 12 months, you will see IPOs in the crypto/blockchain space. We are not going to be the first and we are not going to be the last, but I expect us to be on the leading side…it’s a natural evolution for our company.”
Fast forward six months on and rumors of a crypto/blockchain company going public is more realistic than ever. During the week, it was reported that Coinbase Inc. has started plans for a stock market listing according to people familiar with the matter.
Coinbase Investor Day
The event is likely to attract some of the crypto whales and investors ready to invest in startups and companies showing greater return possibilities. It will be a game-changer in the stock market that has not presumably experienced the next level of technology at great lengths.
Coinbase is no mean company as it was valued at $8 billion during the 2018 fundraising round. With a new wave of cryptocurrency adoption and rally looming ahead, going public will stamp the official existence of digital assets in our day to day life.
“The company will invite investors to their Investor Day, where they will publicly talk about the company and financial results- though still only about historical performance,” said Jamie McGurk, a former operating partner at Andreessen Horowitz.
There are talks that the company will go public through a direct listing and avoid the hustles of middlemen, a similar way as Spotify and Slack did. “If further financing is needed in the future, the company now has access to the public capital markets as a seasoned issuer, which is one of the primary benefits of being public anyway,” McGurk explained.
The event is probably going to be a huge eye-opener to the U.S. regulators as they are miles behind competitor economies like China in implementing cryptocurrency policies.