Coinbase is making another bold move to widen its reach beyond traditional crypto trading. The exchange announced Tuesday that it’s acquiring Echo, an investment platform founded by well-known trader Jordan Fish, better known in crypto circles as “Cobie.” The nearly $375 million cash-and-stock deal signals Coinbase’s push to bring fundraising and tokenized securities directly into its ecosystem.
Founded by Cobie, a crypto OG and long-time advocate for community-driven investing, Echo’s platform lets crypto projects raise capital through both private and public token sales. It’s already helped startups secure more than $200 million in funding since launching just two years ago. By integrating Echo’s technology, Coinbase plans to make fundraising easier and more transparent for projects and investors alike.
“Coinbase has acquired Echo, an onchain platform that helps communities invest together and gives founders more options for their cap table,” the crypto heavyweight said in a blog post. “We want to create more accessible, efficient, and transparent capital markets,” Coinbase added.
The company said it will start with crypto token sales through Echo’s Sonar platform, but it’s clear the long-term vision extends beyond that. Coinbase plans to eventually expand support to tokenized securities and real-world assets—an area that’s gaining traction as the lines blur between traditional finance and blockchain-based capital markets.
The timing of the deal reflects a renewed sense of optimism across the crypto industry. M&A activity has picked up as companies prepare for a friendlier regulatory environment under the Trump administration, which has promised to make the U.S. more hospitable to digital assets. Just last week, Kraken struck a $100 million agreement to acquire futures exchange Small Exchange, setting the stage to launch a fully U.S.-based derivatives suite, Reuters reported.
For Coinbase, this isn’t the first time it’s used acquisitions to expand its reach. Back in May, it completed a $2.9 billion deal for Deribit, one of the largest crypto options providers, filling a major gap in its derivatives offering and strengthening its international footprint.
With Echo now in its portfolio, Coinbase appears to be positioning itself as the go-to platform for everything from trading and derivatives to capital formation and tokenized assets—a sign that it’s betting big on the next wave of crypto innovation happening in plain sight.
