Coinbase is in late‑stage talks to acquire BVNK, a stablecoin infrastructure startup based in London, in a deal valued around $1.5 billion to $2.5 billion, according to a Bloomberg’s report citing people allegedly familiar with the matter.
The discussions are still under due diligence though, so nothing is finalized. The deal may close later this year or early next year, but terms could still change and the entire plan could fall apart.
This has not been announced publicly, and those speaking on the matter apparently requested anonymity.
Coinbase Ventures, the venture capital arm of Coinbase, is already an existing investor in BVNK. Representatives for BVNK did not respond to inquiries. The largest US crypto exchange said:
“We don’t comment on rumors or speculation. Driven by our mission to expand economic freedom globally, we actively explore various opportunities — whether through building, acquiring, partnering, or investing — to advance our mission.”
The tone is neutral, but the move fits with Coinbase’s push to expand outside pure trading revenue.
Coinbase pushes deeper into stablecoins and payments
Reports earlier this week said Coinbase has exclusivity in the takeover talks.That means no other bidders are actively in the running now.The talks followed a full bidding process.
The timing lines up with increased activity in the stablecoin market after the first U.S. regulation for stablecoins passed in July. Since then, payment networks like Visa and Mastercard, along with major banks, have been testing blockchain‑based tools for faster and cheaper payments.
Almost 20% of Coinbase’s Q3 revenue came from stablecoins, according to the company’s shareholder letter released Thursday. The exchange has been pushing to drive more usage of USDC, the stablecoin it earns revenue from in partnership with Circle.
One example: a payments integration with Shopify. On a call after earnings, Coinbase executives said they are actively searching for acquisitions in the payments sector, confirming that this direction is a core expansion plan.
BVNK runs a platform that lets merchants accept payments, including in stablecoins. This is where the deal matters. Earlier this year, Coinbase launched Coinbase Business, a service for payments, invoicing, and financial operations.
BVNK’s system could be plugged into that to create a stablecoin‑based banking and payments experience for companies that do not want to depend on traditional banking rails.
BVNK was founded in 2021 and has raised $90 million in funding. Its investors include Citi Ventures, Haun Ventures, and Visa.
If the deal closes, Coinbase would take another step away from depending on trading volumes. If it fails, nothing changes except that we all now know exactly what direction Coinbase is steering toward; payments built on stablecoins.
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