• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
TechThe 21st Century Corporation

Behind the Redesign and Reinvention of Coinbase

Robert Hackett
By
Robert Hackett
Robert Hackett
Down Arrow Button Icon
Robert Hackett
By
Robert Hackett
Robert Hackett
Down Arrow Button Icon
October 19, 2016, 3:00 PM ET
Courtesy of Coinbase

Despite Bitcoin’s failure to achieve its initial promise as quickly as early enthusiasts expected, Coinbase, a digital money startup based in San Francisco, has continued to chug along, attempting to find its footing in a market defined less by everyday consumers than by speculators and aficionados.

Founded four years ago by a former Goldman Sachs (GS) trader and an Airbnb engineer, Coinbase is one of the most well-funded cryptocurrency ventures yet. It has raised $117 million at private valuation approaching $500 million, according to a source familiar the company’s finances.

Given slower-than-expected adoption rates for Bitcoin combined with technological issues that have prevented the fundamental technology from processing a greater number of transactions, Coinbase has been subtly reinventing itself over the past year or so. First launched as a wallet for people to stash their Bitcoin online, Coinbase has been evolving into a broker that people can use to buy and sell digital money.

On Wednesday, the company is debuting a “beta version” redesign of its website that will enter full production in the next two weeks. The changes are more than cosmetic—they’re indicative of a company that is adapting and pivoting into new businesses while hoping to attract a broader customer base.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

“Fundamentally, Coinbase is an easy on-ramp to this world,” says Fred Ehrsam, a Coinbase cofounder, comparing the software to AOL during the Internet’s early days. “You need the right interface for practical, everyday people to be able to use it.”

Here’s a screenshot of the company’s newly designed brokerage page, where users can buy and sell digital money and various government backed bills. For example, a person can exchange U.S. dollars for Bitcoin, or vice verse.

buy_1

“The evolution shows what we are strategically focused on as a company,” said Dan Romero, vice president of operations at Coinbase, in an email.

Jori Lallo, lead engineer on the project, clarified that “the new design is more like Fidelity or Schwab than Venmo.”

For comparison, below is an image of the old layout.

old-buy-page
People have exchanged more than $5 billion in digital and regular currencies through Coinbase to date, the company says. This year the firm is on track to help people exchange $2.5 billion, a sum about equal to what was traded through it in the last three years combined, the company tells Fortune.

In May, Coinbase added the option for customers to trade more than just Bitcoin. It added Ether, a rival cryptocurrency whose market capitalization exceeds $1 billion. Ether trading now generates 15% of Coinbase’s revenue, the company tells Fortune. (You can read more about Ethereum, the decentralized network that undergirds Ether, in this recent Fortune feature story about Vialik Buterin, its creator.)

For more on Bitcoin, watch:

The decision to expand beyond one cryptocurrency led Coinbase earlier this year to rename its Bitcoin exchange GDAX, or global digital asset exchange, a professionalized platform where traders can engage in high frequency trading. In August, the company added to GDAX another popular cryptocurrency, Litecoin, developed by Charlie Lee, a Coinbase engineer.

Although Coinbase would not reveal its exact revenue figures, it said that its monthly revenues have grown three times in the past year. The numbers have been buoyed by interest following Brexit, as the British pound took a hammering and people looked for alternative stores of value. The uptick can also be attributed to the company’s international expansion into markets like Australia, increased transaction limits on Coinbase’s brokerage, as well as growing interest in alternative cryptocurrencies like Ether.

“I think we’ve just hit our stride with a product that’s easier to use,” says Brian Armstrong, Coinbase CEO and cofounder. He adds that the company is committed to working with regulators and government authorities to ensure it is abiding by all financial rules in relevant jurisdictions, rather than storming into new markets with a freewheeling exchange and asking for forgiveness later.

Here’s another shot of another page on the company’s newly redesigned website, a view of its “dashboard,” which shows a customer’s portfolio of currencies, recent transaction activity, and price changes.

dashboard_1

And, for comparison, the old “wallet” page is below.

old-wallet

Ehrsam and Armstrong say they believe that “app coins” and tokens built on top of decentralized networks like Ethereum will lead to bolstered interest in cryptocurrencies.

“I think this is a huge concept that the world does not yet understand, but will become very important over time,” Ehrsam says, pointing to examples such as “file coin,” a digital token designed to power a decentralized document storage app similar to Dropbox, as well as “reputation,” a token designed to let people bet on just about anything through the prediction market Augur.

When asked about Augur’s rocky “initial coin offering,” the cryptocurrency equivalent of an initial public offering which took place on rival exchanges such as Poloniex and Kraken, Ehrsam attributes the post-debut price slump to “some irrational exuberance prior to the launch.”

“People are getting their heads on straight,” Ehrsam says, mentioning that Coinbase plans to consider adding additional tokens and cryptocurrencies for trade in the future, after seeing them gain traction in other markets first. (No word yet on which ones.) “It’s exciting but early days,” he says.

About the Author
Robert Hackett
By Robert Hackett
Instagram iconLinkedIn iconTwitter icon
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Future of Work
Ford CEO has 5,000 open mechanic jobs with up to 6-figure salaries from the shortage of manually skilled workers: 'We are in trouble in our country'
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezJanuary 31, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
'I just don't have a good feeling about this': Top economist Claudia Sahm says the economy quietly shifted and everyone's now looking at the wrong alarm
By Eleanor PringleJanuary 31, 2026
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Ryan Serhant starts work at 4:30 a.m.—he says most people don’t achieve their dreams because ‘what they really want is just to be lazy’
By Preston ForeJanuary 31, 2026
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Big Tech
The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative cut 70 jobs as the Meta CEO’s philanthropy goes all in on mission to 'cure or prevent all disease'
By Sydney LakeFebruary 1, 2026
15 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Success
U.S. Olympic gold medalist went from $200,000-a-year sponsorship at 20 years old to $12-an-hour internship by 30
By Orianna Rosa RoyleFebruary 1, 2026
10 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
Meet the first CEO of the IRS: A Jamie Dimon protégé facing a $5 trillion test this tax season
By Shawn TullyJanuary 31, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.


Latest in Tech

Startups & Ventureautonomy
Waymo seeking about $16 billion near $110 billion valuation
By Edward Ludlow, Aaron Kirchfeld and BloombergFebruary 1, 2026
2 hours ago
AIspace
SpaceX seeks FCC nod to build data center constellation in space
By Sana Pashankar, Loren Grush and BloombergFebruary 1, 2026
2 hours ago
dewar
CommentaryLeadership
The AI adoption story is haunted by fear as today’s efficiency programs look like tomorrow’s job cuts. Leaders need to win workers’ trust
By Carolyn DewarFebruary 1, 2026
13 hours ago
trader
Investingbubble
‘We’re not in a bubble yet’ because only 3 out of 4 conditions are met, top economist says. Cue the OpenAI IPO
By Nick LichtenbergFebruary 1, 2026
13 hours ago
Big TechMark Zuckerberg
The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative cut 70 jobs as the Meta CEO’s philanthropy goes all in on mission to ‘cure or prevent all disease’
By Sydney LakeFebruary 1, 2026
15 hours ago
The founder and CEO of $1.25 billion AI identity verification platform Incode, Ricardo Amper
SuccessGen Z
CEO of $1.25 billion AI company says he hires Gen Z because they’re ‘less biased’ than older generations—too much knowledge is actually bad, he warns
By Emma BurleighFebruary 1, 2026
16 hours ago