Coinbase Obtains MiFID License in the United Kingdom
TL;DR: Coinbase has secured a UK investment services authorisation. It means UK users will soon be able to trade derivatives and equities alongside crypto, on one platform, under one login. It will unlock the single biggest expansion of our UK product suite since we entered the market, and a major step toward bringing the everything exchange to life.
Today we're announcing that Coinbase has been granted UK authorisation to provide investment services. In plain terms: we can now offer traditional financial instruments, not just crypto.
What it actually unlocks
This is not an abstract regulatory milestone. It changes what UK users can do on Coinbase.
Institutional and advanced traders will gain access to derivatives, including crypto, equity and commodity perpetual futures. Retail users will, for the first time, be able to trade equities on Coinbase. And this is just the opening set.
The license sits within our UK entity alongside our e-money licence and crypto registration. It consolidates our position as the most comprehensively regulated crypto player in the market.
Who this is for
The FCA's own research found that around 7 million UK adults already hold crypto, and that a quarter of non-holders would be more likely to participate if the sector were properly regulated. We look forward to October 2027, when the UK's full crypto regime takes effect and that becomes a reality. But this licence means UK users don't have to wait to benefit. It gives both crypto holders and newcomers regulated access to traditional investments today, on a platform millions of Britons already trust to invest, save and trade.
The UK is one of the world's most sophisticated capital markets and one of its most enthusiastic fintech adopters. It deserves a platform built for where finance is going, not where it has been.
Ending financial fragmentation
Today, a typical UK investor juggles a banking app, a brokerage account, a savings product and a crypto wallet. We think that era is ending.
Coinbase is building the everything exchange: one platform, one login, for your entire financial life. Stablecoin payments, savings, borrowing, crypto, and now derivatives and equities, with tokenised real-world assets to come. In recent months we've launched UK savings and borrow products. This authorisation unlocks the next chapter.
We believe crypto is the foundational architecture of the modern financial system, and the gap between traditional and digital finance is closing fast. The UK is now one of the first markets where users will see what that convergence actually looks like.
Why the UK
Credit where it's due. The UK Government and the FCA are building a forward-thinking, pro-growth framework for digital finance. Clear, robust guardrails are what give mainstream institutions and everyday users the confidence to participate. This license is proof that high regulatory standards and innovation are not in tension. They reinforce each other.
We chose to deepen our commitment to the UK because the UK made itself worth committing to.
