Coinbase and Robinhood Move Markets; BTC Dips, Rebounds
Coinbase expands beyond crypto with 24/5 stocks, prediction markets, and DEX aggregation as Robinhood outperforms in 2025
Coinbase used its December 17 System Update to outline a broader product push that brings the company closer to a full-service financial app. The update included plans for commission-free stock and ETF trading with 24/5 availability, along with new crypto-native features designed to widen what users can do inside the Coinbase ecosystem.
The announcement lands amid a widening gap between major crypto-linked brokerage stocks. CNBC’s MacKenzie Sigalos highlighted that Robinhood is up more than 200% year to date while Coinbase is in the red, pointing to Robinhood’s early lead in a newer, highly engaging brokerage product category.
Coinbase’s update centers on three main additions:
- Commission-free stocks and ETFs with 24/5 trading, expanding Coinbase’s offering beyond digital assets.
- Native prediction market integration via Kalshi, bringing event-based markets directly into the app.
- A DEX aggregator intended to provide “instant access to millions of tokens,” aiming to simplify onchain discovery and trading within a single interface.
Together, the moves signal Coinbase’s intent to compete on product breadth with Robinhood, which has been steadily blending traditional markets access with crypto trading. The inclusion of stocks, ETFs, prediction markets, and aggregated decentralized liquidity reflects an effort to keep more activity on-platform, rather than sending users across multiple apps and venues.
The contrast in stock performance underscores why product momentum matters in this category. As platforms compete for attention and recurring usage, features that keep users engaged across market types—whether equities, crypto, or event markets—can influence how investors view long-term growth and resilience.
