Coinbase Listing Brought Attention to Crypto, Says Tezos's Kathleen Breitman

Coinbase's direct listing is bringing attention to crypto, but there's some "hopium" going on in DeFi, says Breitman.

AccessTimeIconApr 15, 2021 at 7:17 p.m. UTC
Updated Sep 14, 2021 at 12:41 p.m. UTC
10 Years of Decentralizing the Future
May 29-31, 2024 - Austin, TexasThe biggest and most established global hub for everything crypto, blockchain and Web3.Register Now

The direct listing of Coinbase (Nasdaq: COIN) on Wednesday has generated excitement in the cryptocurrency space, says Kathleen Breitman, co-founder of the smart-contracts blockchain platform Tezos.

The Coinbase stock price rose after its initial trade at $381 a share on Wednesday though has since settled back to about $320.

"It's great to have Coinbase in the spotlight," Breitman said in an interview on CoinDesk TV. "It's fantastic they were able to do a direct listing."

  • Asked about the decline in the overall crypto-market share of bitcoin (BTC) and the rise of altcoins, she said: "Bitcoin has been fantastic for getting people acquainted with the idea of a digital asset. I see smart-contract platforms as a movement forward."
  • "A lot of new projects tend to overpromise and under deliver," she said.
  • There is a lot of "hopium," she said, especially in decentralized finance (DeFi). "Yield farming looks more like gambling than financial innovation."
  • "Some lending protocols have negative NIMs, which you don't see in institutional finance." NIM stands for net interest margin, or what a lender collects in interest from borrowers minus what it pays out on deposits and other funding.  

The rapid growth in smart contracts has underpinned significant price rallies in ether, the native cryptocurrency of the Ethereum blockchain, and other alternative coins (altcoins) over the past year.

Many altcoins have appreciated in the lead-up to COIN's direct listing, including Tezos' token XTZ.

Tezos has lagged behind bitcoin over the past year however, tripling in price versus a nine-fold gain for BTC. Ether has increased 16-fold.

Disclosure

Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated.

CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated, digital assets exchange. The Bullish group is majority-owned by Block.one; both companies have interests in a variety of blockchain and digital asset businesses and significant holdings of digital assets, including bitcoin. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive options in the Bullish group as part of their compensation.


Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk's longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.