Cathie Wood, the brains behind ARK Investment Management and a trailblazer in the financial world, continues to keep her faith in the potential of Coinbase. This is despite the ongoing regulatory whirlwinds in the cryptocurrency landscape and the recent Ripple case victory, albeit only partial.
Wood, a notable figure among crypto industry commentators, has echoed the sentiment of many, highlighting the positive ripples the recent ruling could make. The court had decided that the XRP tokens, sold to casual investors via crypto platforms, weren’t securities. This could potentially pave the way for Coinbase and Binance, both embroiled in their own legal clashes with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
In her analysis, Wood pointed out the resilience of Coinbase’s value. Despite a warning issued by Wells in March and a lawsuit from the SEC in June, the stock’s price managed to weather the storm, refusing to hit rock-bottom. This underlines the inherent robustness of Coinbase, she posited.
Three of ARK’s Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) recently cashed in on Coinbase’s market rally. They sold off a total of 248,838 shares on July 17, valued at around $26 million. This comes on the heels of the ARKInnovation ETF selling $12 million worth of Coinbase stock just six days earlier, on July 11. Since the start of 2023, Coinbase’s shares have experienced a 184% growth spurt, going from a mere $33.61 a share to a whopping $105.61.
However, not everyone is as bullish on Coinbase as Wood. Berenberg Capital Markets analysts caution that the regulatory landscape for cryptocurrency exchanges is still far from settled. Mark Palmer, the lead analyst, highlighted that in light of Judge Analisa Torres’ comments on the Ripple ruling, Coinbase Earn, a product offering yields on crypto staking, could easily be defined as a security.
