Coinbase is continuing to expand its business from a single trading platform to a more comprehensive financial services platform. The company announced an expansion of its partnership with Standard Chartered Bank, adding multi-currency fiat on-ramp and settlement channels for institutional clients, covering Coinbase Prime and Coinbase Exchange.
Added four new fiat currency channels
Following this integration, institutional clients can conduct fund transfers using AUD, SGD, CAD, and CHF. EUR and GBP are now supported through settlement arrangements backed by globally systemically important banks. Coinbase stated that this service is available to institutional clients engaged in spot, derivatives, and financing activities, but is currently not available to Prime Trading clients in the EU.
Coinbase stated that an increasing number of institutions need to move funds between markets, prefer not to rely long-term on a single base currency, and wish to avoid repeated foreign exchange conversions when trading across markets. The new channels are designed to allow clients to manage their positions directly using the currencies already in use across regions, reducing the costs and time delays associated with additional currency conversions.
Institutions place greater emphasis on settlement efficiency.
For large trading institutions, converting funds into a single currency before allocating them to different markets often increases execution costs and reduces capital efficiency. Coinbase believes that multi-currency channels can reduce such friction and enable more direct management of global trading ledgers.
This partnership further integrates Coinbase’s institutional services with the infrastructure of major international banks. Standard Chartered has been continuously expanding its digital asset services in recent years, while Coinbase has been enhancing its comprehensive trading and custody tools for clients such as hedge funds, asset managers, and market makers.
Coinbase also linked this partnership to its stablecoin strategy, stating that demand may grow for customers to switch between local fiat currencies and local stablecoins to achieve faster settlement experiences.
The U.S. restarts direct deposit of wages
In addition to institutional services, Coinbase has reinstated the Direct Deposit feature for U.S. users, allowing them to automatically allocate a portion of their salary to USDC or other crypto assets. Coinbase states that eligible allocations incur no transaction fees.
The company views this feature as part of a broader financial platform strategy that extends beyond trading to include payments, savings, and on-chain services. Compared to multi-currency channels aimed at institutions, direct payroll deposits are more retail-focused. Together, these initiatives demonstrate Coinbase’s efforts to strengthen both its institutional and retail business lines simultaneously.
The stock price continues to be weighed down by trading volume.
The report noted that Coinbase's stock price recently stood at $180.60, down 2.37% for the day. While the market closely monitors progress on new products and partnerships, it is also assessing pressures from slowing trading activity and restructuring costs.
Coinbase previously disclosed an AI-related restructuring plan to reduce approximately 14% of its workforce, or about 700 employees, expected to incur short-term costs of $50 million to $60 million. Meanwhile, the company is reportedly receiving conditional approval for a nationwide trust charter in the United States; if finalized, this could further strengthen its custody and stablecoin infrastructure.