Coinbase wants to support ‘responsible DeFi development’ through Base

Coinbase is making a big push to bring institutions over to crypto, with tokenized real-world assets taking center stage

article-image

rarrarorro/Shutterstock modified by Blockworks

share

Coinbase is working to square regulations with decentralized finance (DeFi) as it moves to attract institutions to the space.

The exchange’s asset management arm recently debuted Project Diamond, a platform for mirroring debt instruments used in traditional finance by tokenizing them on Base, Coinbase’s layer-2 Ethereum network.

Project Diamond is pitched to help institutions create, buy and sell their own native digital assets. Coinbase says under 0.25% of global assets are currently represented on blockchains, and the effort is geared towards boosting that figure.

Coinbase is a public company regulated by the US Securities and Exchange Commission, and through its new real-world asset (RWA) platform the firm is looking to solidify its position as a middle ground through which institutions can explore crypto. 

“Institutional investors are expected to favor compliant platforms like Coinbase and Gemini,” said Danny Lim, a core contributor at MarginX. “Organizations will look to lower the barrier to entry for DeFi activities, potentially broadening the market base.”

Although, for now only registered institutional investors outside the US will be able to use Coinbase’s tokenization platform.

Coinbase has previously noted in a blog post that it views tokenization as an “industry shift from focusing on pure decentralization to a practical combination of centralized entities and semi-decentralized networks that can onboard additional users.”

Coinbase sees regulation improving decentralization

Stablecoins are some of the most ubiquitous RWAs in the crypto space.

Robert Leshner, founder of RWA-focused blockchain startup Superstate, previously noted at the Real World Asset Summit in New York that non-volatile assets — such as stablecoins — are much easier to program than volatile assets. 

This makes stablecoins and other tokenized pegged assets a key entry point for the transition from traditional finance into blockchain.

Stablecoin supplies have grown by more than $2.2 billion over the last quarter alongside increased activity in crypto markets. Tokenized treasures, another relatively stable asset, have also experienced significant growth by over 450% over the past year.

The growth in RWAs and their implementations have drawn criticism over centralization, particularly around reliances on oracles.

“Decentralization and regulation are not in conflict, in many instances they can inform and improve each other,” a Coinbase spokesperson told Blockworks. 

“At this stage in the development of blockchain technology we support responsible DeFi development because it grows the crypto ecosystem as a whole.”


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

  • Blockworks Daily: The newsletter that helps thousands of investors understand crypto and the markets, by Byron Gilliam.
  • Empire: Start your morning with the top news and analysis to inform your day in crypto.
  • Forward Guidance: Reporting and analysis on the growing intersection of crypto and macroeconomics, policy and finance.
  • 0xResearch: Alpha directly in your inbox. Market highlights, data, degen trade ideas, governance updates, token performance and more.
  • Lightspeed: Built for Solana investors, developers and community members. The latest from one of crypto’s hottest networks.
  • The Drop: For crypto collectors and traders, covering apps, games, memes and more.
  • Supply Shock: Tracking Bitcoin’s rise from internet plaything worth less than a penny to global phenomenon disrupting money as we know it.
Tags

Upcoming Events

Industry City | Brooklyn, NY

TUES - THURS, JUNE 24 - 26, 2025

Permissionless IV serves as the definitive gathering for crypto’s technical founders, developers, and builders to come together and create the future.If you’re ready to shape the future of crypto, Permissionless IV is where it happens.

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

recent research

Research Report Templates.jpg

Research

Bluefin possibly stands at an inflection point. The token is near an all-time low yet the protocol’s spot volume market share and derivatives exchange usage have been increasing month over month since its November launch. Given its current market position and the upcoming upgrades (for both Bluefin and SUI), there may be upside potential before the increased supply growth in December. However, strong opposition from existing competitors (like Cetus and Suilend), as well as new entrants (like Aftermath), pose key challenges to Bluefin’s medium-term success.

article-image

Top Committee Democrat Sen. Elizabeth Warren in her opening statement accused Atkins of “helping billionaire CEOs like Sam Bankman-Fried”

article-image

Introducing garbled circuits for enhanced privacy and regulatory compliance

article-image

Ross Ulbricht was a freedom maximalist building freedom tech, powered by Bitcoin

article-image

Solana validators can reap benefits including payments, votes and community clout

article-image

Sponsored

WalletConnect is cementing itself as the essential connectivity layer, ensuring wallets remain the entry point for billions of users

article-image

According to a legal filing, Galaxy Digital helped boost the price of LUNA while quietly selling its tokens