In an interview with CNBC, Brian Armstrong said he is “pretty optimistic” that the CLARITY Act will receive more than 60 votes in the Senate in September.
- Armstrong said Bitcoin spot trading now accounts for only about 12% of Coinbase's revenue, with the company expanding into other areas of crypto.
- Coinbase plans to launch its tokenized equities product for non-U.S. customers from Abu Dhabi next week.
- Armstrong identified “agentic finance” as a potentially large future market for Coinbase.
Coinbase (COIN) CEO Brian Armstrong said on Thursday that the cryptocurrency market may be “on the cusp” of the next bull market after Bitcoin (BTC) crossed the $72,000 mark in its latest rally.
In an interview with CNBC, Armstrong also said he expects the pending Digital Asset Market Clarity Act (CLARITY) to pass in September with the 60 votes it needs. “I'm pretty optimistic it'll get over 60 votes,” he stated.
Armstrong acknowledged that ethics provisions related to President Donald Trump's crypto investments remain one of the more contentious issues surrounding the bill. “The President and the White House have put an ethics offer on the table that could go into the Clarity Act,” Armstrong said.
“I think there's a good chance we're on the cusp of the next bull market for spot trading in crypto.”
– Brian Armstrong, CEO, Coinbase
COIN stock rose nearly 8% in morning trade, and was among the top trending tickers on Stocktwits at the time of writing. If gains hold, the shares are poised to close the day at an over one-month high. Retail sentiment around the cryptocurrency exchange flipped to ‘bullish’ from ‘bearish’ over the past day, and chatter increased to ‘high’ from ‘normal’ levels.
Why Does Coinbase CEO Expect Crypto Bull Market?
Armstrong said the recent Bitcoin rally could be part of a broader shift in the crypto market. He pointed to the length of previous bear markets, which typically lasted around 370 to 380 days, and said the current downturn is approaching that duration.
He also cited the upcoming September 15 vote on the CLARITY Act and historically stronger performance for Bitcoin in October, November and December following its halving cycles.
Coinbase Is Less Dependent On Bitcoin Trading
Despite Coinbase shares rallying alongside Bitcoin amid broader weakness in equities, Armstrong said the company's revenue is now much less dependent on spot Bitcoin trading. “Only about 12% of our revenue now comes from Bitcoin spot trading,” he said.
Armstrong pointed to crypto derivatives, prediction markets, stablecoin payments and tokenization of real-world assets among the businesses that have been growing while spot crypto trading has been weaker.
“The big one that's on the horizon is what we call agentic finance or AIFI,” he said, describing the market as being in its early stages but potentially having the “biggest TAM [total addressable market].” Armstrong expects there could eventually be more AI agents than humans, with those agents needing an economy to conduct transactions.
Coinbase Pushes Tokenized Equities Outside US
Armstrong also highlighted Coinbase's expansion into tokenized equities, saying the company has so far only been able to offer the product offshore. “We're launching our tokenized equities product next week out of Abu Dhabi for non-U.S.,” he said.
He added that the U.S. could eventually move in the same direction, with the SEC potentially creating an innovation exemption that would allow crypto securities and tokenized equities to trade domestically.
COIN stock has fallen over 25% this year, while Bitcoin’s price has dipped around 18%.
Read also: MSTR, BMNR, COIN, CRCL Stock Extend Rally After Bitcoin Blasts Past $71K, Triggering $3B Liquidation Wave
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