As the cryptocurrency ecosystem faces severe scrutiny and investigations from state authorities and media, crypto trading platform Coinbase is trying to come up with new debates to shape policies around cryptocurrency. According to reports, Coinbase has now established a global crypto-native think tank called the Coinbase Institute.
The Coinbase Institute will conduct and publish research on all digital assets (including cryptocurrency) and Web 3.0 — the decentralized version of the internet or the internet of tomorrow. The institute did not list any particular goals that it wants to accomplish but it will conduct debates with academics, lawmakers, and the crypto community to study the correlation between technology and finance. The institute will also build an in-house team that will “cut across several niches and increases public knowledge around what’s going on in the global crypto ecosystem,” according to Hermine Wong. She is the director of policy at Coinbase and the director of the Coinbase Institute.
The crypto-native think tank also announced its first-ever academic collaboration with the University of Michigan, wherein they will conduct in-depth analysis and publish their findings surrounding cryptocurrency in U.S. households. Moreover, the think tank will also release regular updates to create an in-depth understanding of concepts in the crypto industry. The institute’s first primer, Crypto and the Climate, has already been published.
The Coinbase Institute is led by Dr. Cesare Fracassi alongside Hermine Wong. Board members include Christian Catalini, the Founder of the MIT Crypto Economics Lab; Manju Puri, a Professor at the Duke University; Vikramaditya S. Khanna, Professor of Law at the University of Michigan; Marco Di Maggio, Hardvard Business School faculty; and Nagpuranand Prabhala, a Professor at the John Hopkins University.
The announcement from Coinbase comes in the wake of the company that has missed its Q1 trading volume goals. Coinbase’s trading volume plunged 44% compared to its Q4 trading volume.
Coinbase’s Efforts to Accelerate Its Trading Volume
The establishment of the Coinbase Institute might help accelerate the trading volume and increase the popularity of Coinbase.
Hermine Wong said, “We’re interested in all aspects of research that involves the cryptocurrency ecosystem and how it is linked to our global economy, how it is interdisciplinary, which is why there’s nothing that’s going to be off-limits.”
She also added that the institute is not linked to non-profit think tanks such as The Atlantic Council or the Brookings Institute, but is modeled on the Research Institutes of companies such as JPMorgan Chase and Microsoft. She refused to state the budget of the Coinbase Institute, which is completely understandable.
Global Crypto Regulators to Craft New Rules
The crypto-economy has been gaining traction from regulators and policymakers to shape how they manage the industry. Almost all digital currencies have experienced a tailspin in recent days because of the growing interest rates. This is why regulators are focused on building new rules. A week ago, the chair of the International Organization of Securities Commissions said global policymakers are planning to establish a new joint body by the end of this year to better manage crypto regulations.
The crumble of TerraUSD/UST and Terra LUNA — the most popular stablecoins of the Terraform Labs — have led authorities, including U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, to ask policymakers to craft a new law regime for all digital currencies.
Similarly, Coinbase has incessantly tried to shape its crypto laws. Last October, the firm came up with a digital asset policy proposal that indicated that Congress should create a new body to manage the events in the ever-growing crypto industry. Last year, the company spent around $785,000 on lobbying efforts in the United States, according to reports.
