Here's how Coinbase would benefit from U.S. ether ETFs if approved, according to JMP

Published Wed, May 22 202411:58 AM EDTUpdated Wed, May 22 20241:58 PM EDT

Coinbase is poised to benefit from U.S. spot ether exchange-traded funds, if they are approved, according to JMP Securities. Expectations for the potential approval of proposed exchange-traded funds tracking spot ether grew this week , a reversal from widespread consensus that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission was unlikely to approve them based on the lack of engagement by the agency on the filings. The turnaround sent ether soaring more than 20% to start the week. ETH.CM= 5D mountain Ether 5-day chart JMP's Devin Ryan said in a note Wednesday that Coinbase could see benefits to its transaction, custody and staking businesses as a result of the introduction of ether ETFs. "For Coinbase … we estimate that with a spot-Ethereum ETF approval, the end effect is that more capital will flow into the broader industry, and accordingly, we do not see this as cannibalistic to the existing business model," Ryan said in the note. "It is effectively removing barriers that previously existed for certain pools of capital." "Perhaps even more so we anticipate that demand around usage of underlying ETH should accelerate as more capital flows into the network and more development occurs on top of it, which could drive an even greater acceleration of volume and demand in the spot market relative to ETF demand," Ryan added. He highlighted that Coinbase's own blockchain, Base, operates on the Ethereum network. He also said an ether ETF approval does not necessarily signal a blessing by the SEC of the broader crypto asset class, or even comfort around all ETH use cases, such as staking. Nevertheless, an approval could still set a precedent that "in many participants' eyes serves to de-risk their involvement" with crypto. JMP has an outperform rating on Coinbase and a price target of $320, implying nearly 42% upside from Tuesday's close. Shares are up more than 33% year to date. COIN YTD mountain COIN year to date Final decisions on applications by VanEck and Ark Invest are due this Thursday and Friday, respectively. BlackRock, Fidelity, Invesco, Grayscale and Bitwise Asset Management also have applications awaiting decisions this year.