Coinbase has hinted at launching a new product, sparking speculation that it might be its own wrapped Bitcoin token.
On August 14, Coinbase's official X account shared a brief teaser: "cbBTC," with a promise that it is "coming soon."
This cryptic message was echoed by Jesse Pollak, the creator of Coinbase's Layer-2 network Base, who expressed his enthusiasm for Bitcoin and mentioned that Base aims to create a "massive Bitcoin economy."
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Coinbase and Pollak's posts follow a controversy involving Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC) creator BitGo and Tron founder Justin Sun. On August 9, BitGo revealed plans to move WBTC's control to a joint venture with custody platform BiT Global and Sun's Tron ecosystem.
In response, BA Labs, a crypto risk management firm, proposed on MakerDAO's forum to limit the growth of WBTC exposure and added:
We find that Sun's involvement as a controlling interest in the new WBTC joint venture presents an unacceptable level of risk.
Matt Belshe, the CEO of BitGo, dismissed these concerns, attributing the backlash to Justin Sun's reputation rather than actual risks and assuring that WBTC's security will remain unchanged.
Justin Sun also addressed the issue on August 10 via X, clarifying that his involvement in WBTC does not grant him direct access to funds and asserting that "no changes to WBTC" have occurred.
The timing of Coinbase's cbBTC teaser has led many to believe that the crypto exchange is positioning itself to offer an alternative to WBTC. The community awaits more details as these developments unfold, anticipating how they will impact the decentralized finance ecosystem.
In other news, Coinbase is dealing with a lawsuit filed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission alleging that the crypto exchange has violated federal securities laws. A recent update of the case is that Coinbase has requested access to Chair Gary Gensler's private emails, which the SEC opposes.
