Key Points
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Coinbase will acquire Deribit, the top bitcoin and ether options exchange, for around $2.9 billion.
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The deal expands Coinbase’s role in the crypto derivatives market, which is key for institutional growth.
Coinbase Global has reached an agreement to acquire Deribit, the world’s largest trading platform for bitcoin and ether options, in a transaction valued at approximately $2.9 billion, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The deal will be structured as a combination of $700 million in cash and 11 million shares of Coinbase Class A common stock, executives confirmed.
Deribit, headquartered in Panama, dominates the crypto options market and is a key venue for institutional-grade derivatives trading. Its acquisition will significantly expand Coinbase’s exposure to the crypto derivatives segment, which has become one of the highest-volume areas in digital assets.
The transaction comes amid a renewed wave of crypto industry mergers and acquisitions. It also coincides with pro-crypto policy messaging from U.S. President Donald Trump, who has pledged to turn the United States into a “bitcoin superpower”, signaling a friendlier regulatory outlook under his administration.
If completed, the acquisition will position Coinbase as a major force in crypto derivatives, which continue to grow in importance for institutional and sophisticated retail traders alike.
