Tezzies hodlers, rejoice. Coinbase has just given XTZ its blessing.
The San Francisco-based cryptocurrency exchange announced today that it is soon adding Tezos (XTZ) on its Coinbase Pro platform. The exchange’s pro users “across all supported jurisdictions,” with the exception of New York, can begin trading XTZ against U.S. dollars and Bitcoin beginning on August 5, according to the company’s statement.
The rollout will occur in four stages, beginning with a “transfer-only mode” for the first 12 hours in which Coinbase Pro customers will not yet be able to place and fill orders. Users can then expect an incremental ramp up in trading within 15 minutes of going live with XTZ.
Coinbase’s Tezos announcement follows a recent slate of additions to its trading platform, both for the exchange’s pro and retail customers, including Chainlink, EOS, the stablecoin DAI, Dogecoin, and Ripple’s XRP. If recent history is any indication, we can expect Tezos support to be added for all Coinbase customers (excluding New York, of course) soon enough.
Tezos launched its proof-of-stake cryptocurrency and decentralized computing platform through a $232 million ICO in July 2017. The coin currently enjoys a $800 million market cap, and though its price is nowhere near its $12 high of late December 2017, XTZ has experienced a jump in price to $1.21 within the last two weeks.
Coinbase’s decision to add Tezos to its platform, however, could be construed as its most controversial offering since Ripple’s XRP. Like Ripple, Tezos is currently embroiled in a high-stakes class-action lawsuit, with a number of angry investors claiming that XTZ is, in fact, a security and should be regulated as such. If a U.S. court were to deem Tezos a security, and concede to its investors that they should have been afforded with the protections and disclosure that come with it, it would then be illegal to trade XTZ on Coinbase or any other crypto exchange.
Coinbase is evidently unconcerned. As for what kind of signal that ultimately sends to the market, we’re about to find out.
