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Coinbase (Nasdaq: COIN) has agreed to acquire Deribit for roughly $2.9 billion, The Wall Street Journal reported on May 8.
The deal would mark the largest acquisition in the history of the crypto industry. Valued at $2.9 billion, the transaction consists of $700 million in cash and 11 million shares of Coinbase Class A common stock.
While Coinbase is the largest crypto exchange in the U.S., Dubai-headquartered Deribit is the world’s leading crypto options and futures exchange. In fact, Deribit processed $1.2 trillion in trading volume in 2024.
“We’re excited to join forces with Coinbase to power a new era in global crypto derivatives,” Deribit CEO Luuk Strijers said.
“As the leading crypto options platform, we’ve built a strong, profitable business, and this acquisition will accelerate the foundation we laid while providing traders with even more opportunities across spot, futures, perpetuals, and options – all under one trusted brand. Together with Coinbase, we’re set to shape the future of the global crypto derivatives market," Strijers added.
Coinbase had been competing with another U.S.-based exchange Kraken for months to acquire Deribit. As reported earlier, Kraken announced the acquisition of NinjaTrader, the futures trading exchange, for $1.5 billion.
Notably, the federal regulator dropped the securities violations case against Coinbase on Feb. 27.
The company's stock which fell as much as 18% following President Donald Trump's "Liberation Day" announcement of tariff hikes has been able to recover.
COIN was trading at $207.25 at the time of writing, up 5% a day.