Coinbase recently teased the upcoming launch of “cbBTC,” a new wrapped staked Bitcoin token intended to compete with Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC). The announcement was made in a tweet early Wednesday and was further elaborated by blockchain journalist Colin Wu, who noted that Coinbase aims to build a robust Bitcoin economic system on its Base network.
This move comes amid growing community concerns about Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC) due to recent involvement from Justin Sun, founder of Tron. Sun has faced scrutiny over his role in WBTC’s custody operations, leading to debates and a transition plan announced by BitGo for WBTC’s multi-institutional custody. Additionally, MakerDAO’s risk management unit BA Labs has suggested offboarding WBTC, and Aave’s risk division, Chaos Labs, is evaluating its treatment of WBTC.
In response to Coinbase’s cbBTC announcement, Jesse Pollak, head of Coinbase’s Base network, expressed enthusiasm for Bitcoin, stating, “We’re going to build a massive Bitcoin economy on Base.
Speculators believe that cbBTC might be Coinbase’s own version of wrapped Bitcoin, potentially launched on the Base Layer-2 chain. One commentator suggested that cbBTC could provide more collateral options for DeFi on Ethereum (ETH).
Previously, Coinbase introduced Wrapped Staked ETH (cbETH), which allows staked Ethereum to be traded or used flexibly, without wrapping fees. The cbBTC could offer similar benefits, including lower minting and redemption fees, and could potentially increase the usage of wrapped Bitcoin.