As Ethereum’s price has surged an impressive 80% since June, Coinbase finds itself in the enviable position of profiting handsomely from its strategic bet on the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency. The catalyst for this remarkable ascent stems largely from Circle’s listing and subsequent stablecoin minting activities on Ethereum—a development that has transformed what many considered a mature asset into a growth story once again.
Coinbase’s revenue streams from Ethereum’s momentum operate through multiple channels, with its Layer 2 solution Base emerging as a particularly lucrative venture. Processing over 9 million daily transactions settled in ether, Base generates sequencer fees that translate into an estimated $75 million in annualized revenue from ETH gas fees alone. This represents a masterful example of infrastructure monetization, where Coinbase fundamentally collects tolls on Ethereum’s digital highway while simultaneously enhancing the network’s scalability. Companies like Coinbase have also integrated Lightning payments to provide users with faster Bitcoin transaction capabilities alongside their Ethereum offerings.
Coinbase’s Base Layer 2 solution exemplifies infrastructure monetization—collecting tolls on Ethereum’s digital highway while generating $75 million annually.
The irony, however, lies in the shifting dynamics of Coinbase’s revenue composition. While Ethereum’s price surge has elevated the exchange’s profile as a major Ethereum-focused player (earning Wall Street’s approval), XRP has quietly usurped Ethereum as Coinbase’s second-largest revenue source in Q2 2025, commanding 13% versus Ethereum’s 12% share of total trading revenue. Coinbase’s net revenue performance has shown consistent growth from Q1 2019 through Q1 2025, demonstrating the exchange’s ability to monetize crypto market volatility effectively. However, despite current market optimism, Coinbase’s Q2 results showed revenue declining to US$1.5 billion from the previous quarter’s US$2 billion.
Legal clarity following SEC rulings and XRP’s rapid settlement capabilities have apparently resonated with traders more than Ethereum’s technological prowess—a reminder that regulatory certainty often trumps innovation in crypto markets.
Recent whale activity adds another layer of complexity to this narrative. An Ethereum whale’s $135 million transfer to Coinbase Institutional in August, coinciding with ETH’s surge past $4,300, suggests potential profit-taking at these elevated levels. With 97% of ETH addresses currently in profit, such movements could signal a critical market juncture.
Bitcoin maintains its dominance with a 34% revenue share, but Coinbase’s ecosystem integration with Ethereum—spanning staking services, Base operations, and trading volumes—positions the exchange to capitalize thoroughly on Ethereum’s continued evolution.
Whether this positioning proves prescient or premature depends largely on sustaining current momentum amid historical patterns that suggest corrections often follow such dramatic rallies.
