For crypto exchange giant Coinbase, 2023 is all about getting web3 into new markets and partnerships while onboarding more users into crypto.
On Wednesday, Coinbase launched its wallet as a service (WaaS), a scalable set of wallet infrastructure APIs that allow companies to create and deploy customizable on-chain wallets to their users. This means companies can natively integrate wallets directly into their apps so users won’t be redirected to separate applications to connect their wallets (like most web3 dApps require today).
“The theme [of 2023] really is this flywheel on the supply side of getting more web3-native apps created and also more web3 capabilities integrated into regular apps,” Will Robinson, VP of engineering at Coinbase, told TechCrunch. “That’s on the supply side, and on the other side is demand: more users coming into the space whether that’s because Base gives them the easiest way to go from being a retail user to playing on-chain for the first time or because the wallet as a service offering can onboard a whole new class.”
At its core level, Coinbase’s goal is to get more apps built and get more users into the ecosystem, Robinson said.
Last month, the exchange announced Base, an Ethereum-focused layer-2 (L2) blockchain, in an effort to make it “dead easy” for builders to create dApps and for users to access those platforms through Coinbase products, Jesse Pollak, lead for Base and head of protocols at Coinbase, said at the time.
“We’ve climbed all of these mountains to do the hard work you have to do to responsibly and legally connect the on-chain and off-chain worlds,” Robinson said. “We want to package that up as much as we can and make it available to as many developers as possible, because that is really, really hard work that we think, if leveraged more broadly beyond our own products, can add value and accelerate the industry.”
When it comes to releasing new products and innovations, Coinbase looks at what its user base is “excited about,” Robinson noted. But the platform also puts a “sharp lens” around where the exchange can add value in the ecosystem. “There’s so much that needs to be built in the space and for a lot of it, frankly, Coinbase could make a play that could be no better or worse than another startup or company,” he said.
Going forward, Coinbase plans to disproportionately focus its intention and resources on capabilities around growing both on-chain and off-chain, navigating regulatory regimes, drawing in the large user base of crypto-curious people and making web3 accessible to novice or casual users, Robinson told TechCrunch.
Partnerships to come
While the company is rolling out new initiatives, the demand from Coinbase users encompasses “a broad range of use cases,” Robinson said.
Some people want to engage with their favorite brands (or already are) but want to explore new opportunities. “And these brands are picking up on the fact that in addition to posting on forums and following them on social media, if we give them the ability to own something in connection to the brand, that’s something people really like and want, and we think we can make that much easier for brands out there,” Robinson said.
For example, Starbucks launched a blockchain-based loyalty program in December that gives “Journeys,” Starbucks’ less technical term for NFTs. And earlier this year, Nike launched an NFT and metaverse platform called .Swoosh, which will allow shoe fanatics to trade and create digital “wearables and virtual sneakers.”
“You think about loyalty programs like Starbucks or tradable goods and avatars, things that Reddit and so forth are experimenting with and DeFi, the list goes on and on,” Robinson said. “We think the layers we’re building are a common denominator that’s helpful for all of it.”
In fact, Robinson said that Coinbase is already having conversations about partnering with others, such as consumer packaged goods and gaming companies, but declined to provide further details.
Growth for developers
Given the recent launch, Coinbase is “laser-focused” on Base and growing the developer world, Robinson shared. This means onboarding developers into fiat on- and off-ramps and regulatory compliant spaces, he added.
Overall, there’s an awful lot missing from the crypto ecosystem right now, like an easy way to onboard users and the ability to embed wallets in apps, rather than linking out.
“The general class of capabilities to start using crypto without becoming crypto people first is aimed at that,” Robinson said. By “sanding off these rough edges,” technologists can “fill in the gap” to help both crypto-native users and novices get into the space.
“The bad news is that there’s still a lot of building to do,” Robinson said. “The good news is it’s mostly just building [and] execution risk, and as an engineer and technologist, that’s where we like to live the most.”
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