Bitcoin News Today: Coinbase Fortifies Crypto Security Amid Quantum Computing Threats

Coinbase Global Inc. (COIN) has initiated a major on-chain migration of its internal Bitcoin and Ethereum wallets as part of a planned security infrastructure refresh, the exchange disclosed in a transparency update. The move, which involves transferring funds between Coinbase-controlled addresses, is designed to reduce long-term exposure of stored assets and reinforce institutional-grade protection. The company emphasized that customer trading, deposits, and withdrawals remain unaffected during the process.

The migration coincides with Coinbase's expansion of decentralized finance (DeFi) services in Brazil, where it is rolling out non-custodial decentralized exchange (DEX) trading and a new "DeFi Mullet" offering. The DEX feature, now available to Brazilian users, allows access to millions of tokens via platforms like Uniswap and Aerodrome without leaving the Coinbase app. This follows Brazil's central bank imposing licensing requirements for crypto firms and classifying stablecoin transactions as foreign-exchange operations. The DeFi Mullet initiative aligns with Coinbase's broader "everything app" strategy, which aims to integrate services such as tokenized stocks, prediction markets, and stablecoin adoption via USDC.

Coinbase also announced plans to launch a prediction market powered by Kalshi, enabling users to bet on events, sports, and elections. The feature, set for a December 17 reveal, will allow customers to deposit USDC into a Coinbase-custodied system. This follows similar moves by Robinhood and Cboe, signaling growing institutional interest in prediction markets. Meanwhile, Coinbase's Base blockchain saw increased adoption in Q3, driven by trading, payments, and social apps, alongside the introduction of Flashblocks for faster transaction confirmations.

The exchange has also bolstered its Bitcoin treasury, adding 2,772 BTC in Q3 to reach a total of 14,548 BTC-valued at $1.3 billion. This comes as Coinbase reported a fivefold year-over-year increase in net income to $432.6 million for Q3 2025, with total revenue rising 55% to $1.9 billion. However, COIN shares have underperformed in 2025, down 25.2% over the past month amid a broader crypto market correction.

The migration and expansion efforts occur against a backdrop of growing concerns about quantum computing threats to blockchain security. Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin recently warned that fault-tolerant quantum computers could break elliptic curve cryptography-used by Bitcoin and Ethereum-by 2028. Post-quantum cryptography (PQC) solutions, which resist quantum attacks, are being explored by regulators and developers. Coinbase's proactive security upgrades, including wallet rotations and PQC research, aim to mitigate such risks.

Coinbase has also issued warnings about impersonation scams exploiting the visibility of its on-chain migrations. The company reiterated that it will never request sensitive user information or new wallet addresses during the process.