Today, our engineering team is beginning final testing of support for Ethereum Classic (ETC) on Coinbase. We are making this announcement consistent with our process for adding new assets.
What ETC support means for our products
Coinbase Custody — the Custody team is planning to add support for inbound transfers and withdrawals of ETC.
Coinbase Consumer — per our previous guidance, Coinbase Consumer will list assets only after they are listed on Coinbase Pro and Prime. We plan to add support for ETC on Coinbase Consumer when sufficient liquidity is established. We expect this to occur approximately 1–2 weeks after trading begins on Pro and Prime. Ethereum was not supported on Coinbase Consumer until after the fork, therefore there are no corresponding Ethereum Classic credits for Coinbase Consumer customers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Is the launch date final? Will it change?
The launch date provided above is our best estimate as to when we will be ready to accept inbound transfers of ETC. We will provide an update on that day to either confirm that we are accepting transfers, or to provide further updates.
Q: Will ETC be available in all geographies?
Yes, ETC will be available everywhere that Coinbase is available. However, please note the product availability details outlined above.
EthereumEthereum ClassicCryptoCryptocurrencyCoinbase
Like what you read? Give Coinbase a round of applause.
From a quick cheer to a standing ovation, clap to show how much you enjoyed this story.
Go to the profile of Coinbase
Coinbase
Our mission is to create an open financial system for the world.
The Coinbase Blog
The Coinbase Blog
Learn about working at Coinbase: https://www.coinbase.com/careers
More from The Coinbase Blog
Where tech, women, and the future of finance converge
Go to the profile of Coinbase
Coinbase
Top on Medium
The Truth About Fish Oil
Go to the profile of Paul Greenberg
Paul Greenberg
Top on Medium
Henry Kissinger: ‘We Are in a Very, Very Grave Period’
Go to the profile of The Financial Times
The Financial Times
Q: Will ETC be available in all geographies?
Yes, ETC will be available everywhere that Coinbase is available. However, please note the product availability details outlined above.
Coinbase Pro — the Pro team is planning to add trading support for ETC. Note that customers who previously had an Ethereum Classic balance on the platform as a result of the 2016 Ethereum hard fork and did not elect to withdraw their funds prior to January 2017 will receive a corresponding Ethereum Classic credit on their Pro account.
Coinbase Prime — the Prime team is planning to add trading support for ETC. Note that customers who previously had an Ethereum Classic balance on the platform as a result of the 2016 Ethereum hard fork and did not elect to withdraw their funds prior to January 2017 will receive a corresponding Ethereum Classic credit.
Coinbase Asset Management — any asset listed on Coinbase Markets will be added to Coinbase Index in accordance with the Coinbase Index methodology. Coinbase Index Fund will rebalance to include ETC.
One of the world’s largest investment banks may soon bring cryptocurrencies into its trillion-dollar investment fold.
Goldman Sachs is allegedly devising a cryptocurrency custody service, individuals familiar with the matter told Bloomberg . The offering would open Goldman Sachs custodial services to cryptocurrency funds, providing them an institutional avenue through which to manage their assets. This would outfit the funds with security, insurance and other investment measures that would otherwise be unattainable.
If not unattainable, such asset-securing guarantees are at the very least elusive in such an unregulated and fledgling market, but if realized, Goldman Sachs’ crypto custody could change this. Talk of the offering itself is an indicator that demand for these services is on the rise, and if the services materialize, they may even encourage skeptical or unenthused investors to get into the game.
“In response to client interest in various digital products we are exploring how best to serve them in this space,” a Goldman Sachs spokesperson commented on the matter. “At this point, we have not reached a conclusion on the scope of our digital asset offering.”
If the offering gets the go-ahead, it would give a buff to the cryptocurrency market’s credibility. Like a vote of confidence, the custody service — and the client protections it would bring — could legitimize cryptocurrency index and hedge funds in the eyes on institutional players. It may also free up the potential for other cryptocurrency-related investment services, such as prime-brokerage services, Bloomberg’s sources indicated.
The offering would be a welcomed addition to the market’s institutional investment instruments. Approved and launched last year, the industry’s only institutional-grade instruments are the Cboe and CME bitcoin futures contracts. For more than a year now, the space has struggled to win the SEC’s approval for a bitcoin ETF, a fight which, despite renewed efforts , is still in a deadlock .
Meanwhile, some institutional organizations have been increasing their involvement in the market without absorbing its assets into traditional investment offerings. The Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), for instance, recently unveiled its cryptocurrency payment ecosystem Bakkt , an announcement that came three months after ICE revealed that it is creating its own cryptocurrency trading platform . Northern Trust Financial also announced earlier this month that it would open administrative services to a select group of hedge funds invested in crypto, although these services do not include direct asset custody like Goldman Sachs’ own.