Hassan Maishera
TL;DR
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Coinbase is letting eligible U.S. retail customers request IPO shares through its app, beginning with Oura’s debut this week.
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Customers can request shares at the IPO offer price before public trading starts, but may receive all, some, or none of the shares requested.
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The offering runs through Coinbase Capital Markets, with Apex handling execution, clearing, and custody.
Coinbase is giving eligible U.S. retail customers a way to request shares in initial public offerings through its app. The feature launches with Oura’s IPO this week.
Customers can submit requests at the IPO offer price before shares begin trading on a public exchange. An order request does not guarantee an allocation: depending on demand, a customer could receive the full amount requested, a smaller amount or no shares.
Coinbase described the launch as part of its effort to build an “Everything Exchange” spanning crypto assets and traditional markets.
IPO Shares Differ From Coinbase’s Pre-IPO Futures
The new feature moves Coinbase into the primary market, where investors seek shares at a company’s public debut. The securities offering is provided through Coinbase Capital Markets, while Apex handles execution, clearing and custody.
It differs from the pre-IPO perpetual futures Coinbase introduced in June for eligible users outside the United States. Those contracts offer synthetic exposure to a private company’s price and do not give the holder an ownership stake. Coinbase launched that product with a contract tied to SpaceX.
With the IPO feature, eligible customers who receive an allocation acquire company shares.
Coinbase Expands Its Traditional Markets Plans
The IPO rollout follows Coinbase’s broader push into stocks, options and other conventional financial products. The company has said U.S. customers can transfer existing stock portfolios to Coinbase and trade major stocks, indexes and exchange-traded funds.
Earlier this month, Coinbase filed a notice registration form with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as part of its effort to list equity perpetual contracts.
Oura’s debut will provide the first test of customer demand for Coinbase’s IPO feature, including how many shares the platform can allocate when requests exceed the amount available.
