Bitcoin has rebounded after the 2018 crash, now valued rising from around $12,000 in October to more than $60,000 in March 2021.
The arrival Wednesday of cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase on the Nasdaq is one of Wall Street’s most anticipated events of the year even though some question whether the cryptocurrency market is sustainable.
Estimates of Coinbase’s value vary depending on how it is calculated, but its capitalisation is expected to range from $70 to $100 billion.
That would make it the largest initial public offer (IPO) for a US company since Facebook in 2012.
Founded in 2012, the platform allows users to buy and sell about 50 cryptocurrencies.
The cryptocurrency market has grown exponentially in 2021 and is now worth a staggering $2.0 trillion as it increasingly attracts interest from big names on Wall Street.
While anybody can “mine” for new bitcoins, to do so requires giant data centres, which has led to platforms such as Coinbase providing a way of trading in cryptocurrencies.
Banks and payment services such as Paypal allow transactions in certain digital currencies.
