In a move that sent shockwaves through the cryptocurrency industry, Coinbase, the United States’ largest digital asset exchange, announced on December 7, 2018 that it was exploring the addition of up to 31 new cryptocurrencies to its platform. The announcement marked a dramatic shift in strategy for a company that had built its reputation on a conservative, compliance-first approach to token listings.
TL;DR
- Coinbase announced plans to explore listing 31 new cryptocurrencies
- Notable tokens under consideration include XRP, EOS, Stellar (XLM), Cardano (ADA), and Chainlink (LINK)
- The exchange previously offered fewer than 10 cryptocurrencies to consumers
- Coinbase also added four ERC-20 tokens to its professional trading platform the same day
- The move signals a shift away from Coinbase’s historically cautious listing approach
A Strategic Pivot for the $8 Billion Exchange
Valued at approximately $8 billion at the time, Coinbase had long been known as the most conservative major exchange in the cryptocurrency space. Operating under the watchful eye of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the San Francisco-based company had maintained a deliberately limited selection of digital assets, offering fewer than 10 cryptocurrencies on its consumer-facing platform: Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, Litecoin, Zcash, USD Coin, 0x, and Basic Attention Token.
The decision to explore 31 new assets simultaneously represented a fundamental departure from this cautious philosophy. While the company emphasized that exploration did not guarantee listing, the sheer breadth of the announcement made clear that Coinbase was positioning itself to compete more aggressively with international exchanges that offered hundreds of trading pairs.
High-Profile Tokens Under Consideration
The list of tokens under consideration read like a who’s who of the cryptocurrency market in late 2018. Perhaps most notably, it included XRP, the token associated with Ripple, which had become a subject of intense debate within the crypto community regarding whether it qualified as a security. The inclusion of XRP suggested that Coinbase was willing to navigate the complex regulatory questions surrounding the token.
Also on the list was EOS, the blockchain platform that had conducted a year-long initial coin offering raising a staggering $4 billion, making it the largest ICO in history at the time. Stellar (XLM), created by Ripple co-founder Jed McCaleb, was another high-profile inclusion, along with Cardano (ADA), NEO, Tezos (XTZ), and Chainlink (LINK).
The full list of 31 tokens under exploration also included smaller but significant projects: Aeternity (AE), Aragon (ANT), Bread Wallet (BRD), Civic (CVC), Dai (DAI), district0x (DNT), EnjinCoin (ENJ), Golem Network (GNT), IOST (IOST), Kin (KIN) from chat app Kik, Kyber Network (KNC), Loom Network (LOOM), Loopring (LRC), Decentraland (MANA), Mainframe (MFT), Maker (MKR), OmiseGo (OMG), Po.et (POE), QuarkChain (QKC), Augur (REP), Request Network (REQ), Status (SNT), Storj (STORJ), and Zilliqa (ZIL).
New Listing Process Designed to Reduce Volatility
Coinbase had revamped its listing policy in September 2018, moving away from the practice of abruptly adding new assets, which had previously sent their valuations spiking along with rumors of insider trading. Under the new framework, the company would publicly announce its intention to explore the potential listing of new assets, thereby reducing the market impact of any single addition.
The company was explicit that exploration did not equate to guaranteed listing. In its announcement, Coinbase stated that “adding new assets requires significant exploratory work from both a technical and compliance standpoint, and we cannot guarantee that all the assets we are evaluating will ultimately be listed for trading.”
This transparent approach was designed to address longstanding criticisms about the opacity of exchange listing decisions and their outsized impact on token prices. By publishing the full list of assets under consideration, Coinbase aimed to level the informational playing field for all market participants.
ERC-20 Tokens Added to Professional Platform
On the same day as the broader exploration announcement, Coinbase also added four new ERC-20 tokens to its professional trading service, Coinbase Pro. Civic (CVC), district0x (DNT), Loom Network (LOOM), and Decentraland (MANA) became available for professional traders, marking another step in the exchange’s ongoing expansion of its altcoin offerings.
The distinction between Coinbase’s consumer platform and its professional service was significant. While the consumer-facing exchange offered only a select group of well-established cryptocurrencies, the professional platform served as a testing ground for newer assets before they might graduate to the main platform.
State-by-State Compliance Complications
One of the most notable aspects of the announcement was Coinbase’s acknowledgment that new tokens might be introduced on a state-by-state basis in the U.S. Given the patchwork of state-level cryptocurrency regulations, the exchange faced the complex task of ensuring compliance across dozens of jurisdictions, each with its own approach to digital asset classification and oversight.
This state-by-state approach reflected the broader regulatory challenges facing the cryptocurrency industry in the United States. Without comprehensive federal legislation providing clear guidelines for digital assets, exchanges like Coinbase were forced to navigate a labyrinth of state-level requirements, each potentially imposing different obligations on token listings and trading activities.
Why This Matters
Coinbase’s December 2018 announcement to explore 31 new cryptocurrencies represented a watershed moment for the mainstream adoption of digital assets. By signaling its willingness to list a dramatically wider range of tokens, the most compliance-focused exchange in the United States was effectively endorsing the legitimacy of projects that had previously been dismissed as speculative. The move would prove prescient: many of the tokens under exploration, including Chainlink, Tezos, and Maker, would go on to become foundational assets in the decentralized finance ecosystem that emerged in the following years. For the broader market, the announcement was a rare bright spot during one of the darkest periods in cryptocurrency history, offering a glimpse of the institutional infrastructure that would eventually support the next bull cycle.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Cryptocurrency investments carry significant risk, and readers should conduct their own research before making any investment decisions. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
31 tokens under consideration and Coinbase was worth $8B at the time. now theyre a public company and still listing random coins lol. plus ca change
XRP on the exploration list in Dec 2018 and it didnt actually list until Jan 2025. seven years of maybe
4 ERC-20 tokens added to Pro the same day they announced the 31 exploration list. typical Coinbase, announce big then deliver small