Bank of America upgrades Coinbase to 'buy' as exchange moves beyond crypto

Bank of America (BofA) has upgraded Coinbase (COIN) to a “buy” rating, pointing to the exchange’s growing ambitions beyond crypto trading and its increasingly diversified business model.

In a research note published Thursday, BofA analyst Craig Siegenthaler highlighted Coinbase’s pivot toward becoming an “everything exchange” — a single app where users could one day trade stocks, buy crypto, make peer-to-peer payments and even wager on prediction markets.

The company detailed some of these plans at a product showcase in December, where it announced upcoming features including 24/5 stock and ETF trading for S&P 500 names, equity perpetuals launching internationally in 2026 and a new tab for prediction markets through its partnership with Kalshi, a CFTC-regulated exchange.

Earlier Thursday, Coinbase announced that futures on Copper and Platinum will go live on the platform on January 26.

These expansions are designed to deepen user engagement and diversify Coinbase’s revenue beyond its core crypto trading business, which remains heavily tied to price swings in assets like bitcoin BTC$90,573.28.

Coinbase is also betting big on Base, its Ethereum layer-2 network. While it was initially launched without a token, management is now weighing a native token to help decentralize the platform and incentivize usage. BofA estimates the move could raise billions in cash, while also bolstering Coinbase’s push into decentralized finance.

Another major initiative is Coinbase Tokenize, a platform designed to bring real-world assets — like private equity and real estate — onto the blockchain. This aims to serve asset managers looking to tap into younger, on-chain investors while taking advantage of faster settlement and lower fees.

Despite a 40% pullback in COIN’s stock price since its July high and rising short interest, BofA maintains a $340 price target, implying nearly 40% upside. The firm argues that Coinbase is still in the early stages of monetizing its broader platform and remains well-positioned as the most regulated and trusted crypto-native company in the U.S.

Coinbase’s near-term financials remain vulnerable to crypto price volatility, but BofA sees the long-term picture: a company transforming from a trading platform into a full-stack financial hub.