Share this article
Coinbase Gets Another Upgrade, This Time at Raymond James, as Bears Capitulate
The brokerage firm lifted its rating on the crypto exchange’s shares to market perform from underperform.
By Will Canny
Updated Mar 12, 2024, 9:05 p.m. Published Mar 12, 2024, 9:03 p.m.
Make us preferred on Google
- Coinbase shares upgraded to market perform from underperform at Raymond James.
- The firm cited the positive impact of spot bitcoin ETF flows on crypto valuations.
- Goldman Sachs revised its negative rating on the shares last week.
Investment bank Raymond James is the latest Wall Street firm to revise its negative rating of the shares of crypto exchange Coinbase (COIN), after surging exchange-traded fund (ETF) inflows triggered a rally in the stock and bitcoin pushed to all time highs.
While Raymond James said its long-term bias on Coinbase remained negative, the firm admitted to underestimating the impact that spot ETF inflows would have on the valuations of cryptocurrencies, particularly bitcoin.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Raymond James upgraded the stock to market perform from underperform. Coinbase shares closed 0.8% higher at $256.14. The changes and commentary were contained in a research report published Tuesday.
Despite the upgrade, the firm maintained a cautious tone.
“We continue to have substantial doubts about the firm’s long term earnings prospects given what we view as an essentially commoditized client offering, a tenuous long-term earnings outlook for cryptocurrency valuations that appears to be largely premised on the Greater Fool Theory rather than inherent value, and meaningful regulatory risk,” analysts led by Patrick O’Shaughnessy wrote.
“We would suggest that the longer this crypto rally persists, the greater the odds that a competitor attacks Coinbase with a disruptive pricing strategy,” the authors wrote.
Until ETF flows taper or reverse, the stock’s positive momentum is likely to persist, the report added.
The Wall Street investment bank Goldman Sachs last week abandoned its bearish stance on Coinbase shares, upgrading the stock to neutral from sell, citing higher crypto prices and increased retail participation.
Read more: Coinbase Upgraded to Neutral as Goldman Sachs Ends Bearish Stance
More For You
KuCoin captured a record share of centralised exchange volume in 2025, with more than $1.25tn traded as its volumes grew faster than the wider crypto market.
What to know:
- KuCoin recorded over $1.25 trillion in total trading volume in 2025, equivalent to an average of roughly $114 billion per month, marking its strongest year on record.
- This performance translated into an all-time high share of centralised exchange volume, as KuCoin’s activity expanded faster than aggregate CEX volumes, which slowed during periods of lower market volatility.
- Spot and derivatives volumes were evenly split, each exceeding $500 billion for the year, signalling broad-based usage rather than reliance on a single product line.
- Altcoins accounted for the majority of trading activity, reinforcing KuCoin’s role as a primary liquidity venue beyond BTC and ETH at a time when majors saw more muted turnover.
- Even as overall crypto volumes softened mid-year, KuCoin maintained elevated baseline activity, indicating structurally higher user engagement rather than short-lived volume spikes.
More For You
Ethereum Foundation makes post quantum security a top priority as new team forms
EF researcher Justin Drake says a new post-quantum team will drive wallet safety upgrades, research prizes and test networks as quantum timelines shorten.
What to know:
- The Ethereum Foundation has elevated post-quantum security to a top strategic priority, forming a dedicated Post Quantum team led by Thomas Coratger with support from leanVM cryptographer Emile.
- Researcher Justin Drake said Ethereum is shifting from background research to active engineering, including biweekly developer sessions on post-quantum transactions and multi-client post-quantum consensus test networks.
- The foundation is backing new cryptography with funding and outreach, launching two $1 million prizes, planning post-quantum community events and education, and stressing that blockchains must prepare early for quantum threats despite their long-term nature.
Top Stories
