Benchmark raises Coinbase price target, citing evolution into core on-chain infrastructure

Wall Street investment bank and research firm Benchmark has reiterated its 'Buy' rating for Coinbase (COIN), raising its price target to $270 from the previous $260. Benchmark noted that Coinbase is evolving beyond a simple cryptocurrency exchange into a core infrastructure platform for the on-chain economy, encompassing stablecoins, derivatives, tokenization, DeFi, prediction markets, and AI commerce. The upgrade comes despite Coinbase reporting a first-quarter net loss of $394 million and revenue of $756 million, which fell short of market expectations. However, Benchmark highlighted that Coinbase's global crypto trading market share has climbed to an all-time high of 8.6%, with assets under custody on the platform increasing to approximately $294 billion.