Coinbase is accelerating its expansion beyond traditional crypto trading, with recent developments pointing to an imminent launch of a regulated prediction markets platform.
This aligns with the company’s July 2025 announcement to build an “everything exchange” that includes on-chain assets like tokenized stocks, derivatives, and event-based betting. The prediction markets feature, teased for U.S. users in the coming months, will reportedly integrate USDC or USD for trading and cover categories like politics, sports, science, and economics.
Coinbase has become the custodian for Kalshi’s USDC-settled event contracts, held in cold storage for added security. This collaboration leverages Kalshi’s federal CFTC regulation to ensure compliance.
Tech researcher Jane Manchun Wong shared screenshots on November 18, 2025, revealing a branded Coinbase site powered by Kalshi, complete with FAQs, onboarding guides, and a user interface for event contracts. The page briefly went live before being pulled offline.
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This positions Coinbase against players like Polymarket global leader with $2B+ weekly volume, Crypto.com partnered with Trump Media, and Gemini seeking CFTC approval for a super app. Prediction markets have surged in 2024-2025, driven by high-stakes events and retail interest.
The rollout starts with U.S. users, followed by international expansion pending approvals. Coinbase’s December 17, 2025, system update event live on X is expected to reveal more, potentially tying into tokenized assets and early-stage token sales.
OCC’s Green Light for Banks Holding Crypto for Gas Fees
In a significant regulatory shift, the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued Interpretive Letter 1186 clarifying that national banks can hold limited crypto assets on their balance sheets to cover blockchain “gas fees.”
This addresses a long-standing operational hurdle, allowing banks to facilitate permissible crypto activities without relying solely on third parties. Banks may pay network fees to support custody, execution, or other approved digital asset services.
They can also hold native tokens like BTC, ETH, SOL, or XRP for “reasonably foreseeable” needs, including platform testing. Holdings must be minimal relative to capital, with banks managing volatility, liquidity, cybersecurity, and compliance risks under “safe and sound” standards.
No broad speculative holdings are allowed—only operational necessities. This builds on May 2025’s Letter 1184 custody and outsourcing and reflects the pro-crypto Trump administration’s influence, including Fed withdrawals of anti-crypto guidance. It reduces counterparty risks and enables smoother on-chain settlements.
Relied on agents/third parties; unclear principal ownership. Banks can hold/pay directly for operational needs. Allows principal holdings for internal/third-party tests. Emphasizes material risks (e.g., volatility) over documentation
Bottleneck for blockchain integration. Unlocks custody, tokenization, and DeFi services. This dual news underscores accelerating mainstream crypto integration: Coinbase betting on user-facing innovation, while OCC eases backend infrastructure for banks. Both could drive institutional inflows, with prediction markets alone projected to hit $10B+ in volume by 2026.
This addresses a long-standing operational hurdle, allowing banks to facilitate permissible crypto activities without relying solely on third parties. Banks may pay network fees like ETH on Ethereum to support custody, execution, or other approved digital asset services.
They can also hold native tokens like BTC, ETH, SOL, or XRP for “reasonably foreseeable” needs, including platform testing. Holdings must be minimal relative to capital, with banks managing volatility, liquidity, cybersecurity, and compliance risks under “safe and sound” standards.
No broad speculative holdings are allowed—only operational necessities. This builds on May 2025’s Letter 1184 custody and outsourcing and reflects the pro-crypto Trump administration’s influence, including Fed withdrawals of anti-crypto guidance. It reduces counterparty risks and enables smoother on-chain settlements.