Cryptocurrencies

Coinbase joins the S&P 500 Index

The largest digital asset exchange will be included in the 'living room' of US finance as of 19 May

13 May 2025

3' min read

Coinbase, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the United States, will be added to the S&P 500 Index, the latest milestone for the booming digital asset sector. The company will replace Discover Financial Services in the index before the start of trading on 19 May, S&P Dow Jones Indices announced in a press release. Shares of Coinbase rose 13 per cent in after-hours trading.

Coinbase's admission is seen as a genuine acknowledgement to the cryptocurrency faithful who helped President Donald Trump win the election in November. "It's a sign of the times," said Dan Dolev, senior payments analyst at Mizuho. "It's the welcome of crypto stocks into the mainstream."

This comes after Capital One received approval from US regulators to purchase Discover Financial Services, a deal that creates the nation's largest credit card issuer by loan volume. "This is a strong signal that digital assets are steadily entering the financial mainstream," said David Schassler, head of multi-asset solutions for investment manager VanEck. "This reflects a broader shift in how traditional markets are beginning to recognise and integrate crypto infrastructure."

After becoming the first major US cryptocurrency company to go public almost four years ago through a direct listing, Coinbase's shares have jumped 260% in the past two years, valuing the company at around $53 billion. These gains have not been a rollercoaster experience for investors, following a series of scandals affecting the industry and bankruptcies, such as the collapse of the FTX exchange in 2022. More recently, the stock has tumbled nearly 17% this year, weighed down by lacklustre earnings and in contrast to a nearly 10% gain for Bitcoin.

Criptovalute, quanto sta guadagnando la famiglia Trump

In the first quarter, the company reported an increase in sales of about 24% compared to the previous period, although the sequential decline was about 10% compared to the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, net profit fell 94% to USD 66 million. Much of the decline was due to the fact that Coinbase valued its cryptocurrency holdings at market price.

Coinbase also announced its intention to acquire Deribit, the world's largest options exchange on Bitcoin and Ether, for $2.9 billion, marking one of the most significant acquisitions in the history of the cryptocurrency industry and coming at a time when Donald Trump's return to the White House triggers a wave of deals between cryptocurrency companies. The president has appointed supporters of digital assets to key government positions and enacted policies that benefit the industry, including the abandonment of various enforcement actions.

"We are seeing a rapid abandonment of all SEC proceedings against cryptocurrencies. So there is a very supportive environment for these things," Mizuho's Dolev said, referring to the Securities and Exchange Commission. "There is no sense of urgency to over-regulate, because it seems that the administration is very friendly."

Companies must have a market capitalisation of at least $20.5 billion and meet the standards of profitability, liquidity and share float to be eligible for membership in the S&P 500.

Inclusion in the US equity benchmark can raise a company's profile and is becoming increasingly important with the growth of passive investment funds. Expulsion from the benchmark can weigh on stock prices as index funds sell stocks to realign with the new composition of the S&P 500. In the March quarterly rebalancing, DoorDash, Williams-Sonoma, TKO Group Holdings and Expand Energy were added to the S&P 500.