Ethereum News Today: Coinbase's Ethereum Exposure Drives 40% Trading Fee Surge in July

Coinbase is increasingly positioning itself as a key player in the Ethereum ecosystem, according to a recent research report from Wall Street broker Bernstein [1]. The firm highlighted Coinbase’s growing alignment with Ethereum, emphasizing the exchange’s exposure to ether (ETH) through its Layer 2 chain, Base, staking, and token integrations. With ETH’s price up 80% since June 5—driven by Circle’s listing and the dominance of Ethereum in stablecoin minting—Coinbase is well-positioned to benefit from the broader altcoin rally [1].

Bernstein noted that Coinbase’s Base chain, which processes over 9 million transactions daily, generates ETH-based revenue through sequencer fees, even though it does not have a native token. This has contributed to an annualized revenue run rate of $75 million for Coinbase [1]. Additionally, Base has become a leading chain for token deployments, and the integration of all Base tokens into Coinbase’s primary exchange has spurred increased trading activity and ETH-denominated brokerage fees [1].

The report also highlighted the strategic value of Coinbase’s Base App, a consumer-facing wallet designed for buying, selling, holding, and transferring crypto, including stablecoin transactions. This expansion further deepens Coinbase’s exposure to Ethereum and its ecosystem [1]. Moreover, the firm’s large ether treasury—valued at $590 million (136,782 ETH)—means Coinbase is a direct beneficiary of ether’s price appreciation [1].

In its second-quarter earnings report, Coinbase reported a 40% surge in July trading fees compared to the Q2 average, largely due to increased ether trading activity [1]. With over 250 tokens listed on the platform, the firm is well-positioned to capitalize on the continued growth of the Ethereum ecosystem.

Based on this analysis, Bernstein has assigned an outperform rating to Coinbase shares, with a $510 price target. At the time of the report’s publication, Coinbase shares were up approximately 4%, trading around $323 [1].

Source: [1] Coinbase Is Becoming a Major Ethereum-Focused Player, Bernstein Says (https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2025/08/11/coinbase-is-becoming-a-major-ethereum-focused-player-bernstein-says)