Coinbase is in advanced talks to buy Deribit, a cryptocurrency derivatives exchange

Acquiring Deribit — the world's largest venue for trading Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) options — would bolster Coinbase's existing derivatives platform

Coinbase is in advanced talks to acquire Deribit, a major cryptocurrency derivatives exchange, according to a report by Bloomberg on Tuesday.

Coinbase, a cryptocurrency exchange, is in talks to buy Deribit, a large cryptocurrency derivatives exchange, according to a Bloomberg report.

Acquisitivities of Deribit - the world’s biggest venue for trading Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) options - would bolster Coinbase’s existing derivatives platform, which currently focuses on futures.

Coinbase and Deribit have reportedly alerted regulators in Dubai to the deal talks. Deribit holds a license in Dubai, which would need to be transferred to Coinbase if a deal goes through, according to Bloomberg, which cited unnamed sources.

In January, Bloomberg reported that a deal with Coinbase could value Deribit at between $4 billion and $5 billion.

Deribit lists options, futures and spot cryptocurrencies. Its total trading volumes last year were around $1.2 trillion, Bloomberg said.

On Monday, Kraken, a rival crypto exchange, announced plans to acquire derivatives trading platform NinjaTrader for around $1.5 billion.

Deribit is a popular crypto derivatives exchange. Source: Deribit

Related: Kraken to acquire NinjaTrader for $1.5B to offer US crypto futures

Red-hot market

Cryptocurrency derivatives, such as futures are options, are surging in popularity in the U.S.

Futures are standardized contracts allowing traders to buy or sell assets at a future date, often with leverage. Options are contracts granting the right to buy or sell - “call” or “put,” in trader parlance - an underlying asset at a certain price.

Both types of financial derivatives are popular among both retail and institutional investors for hedging and speculation.

In December, Coinbase said derivatives trading volumes soared roughly 10,950% in 2024, Coinbase said.

Coinbase lists derivatives tied to some 92 different assets on its international exchange and a smaller number in the U.S., according to its 2024 annual report.

In January, Robinhood rolled out cryptocurrency futures as the popular online brokerage redoubled its efforts to compete with Coinbase.

In February, CME Group, the world’s largest derivatives exchange, said it clocked an average daily trading volume of approximately $10 billion for crypto derivatives in the fourth quarter of 2024 - a more than 300% increase from the year prior.

Coinbase launched the U.S.’ first Commodity Futures Trading Commission-regulated Solana (SOL) futures in February. CME launched its own SOL futures contracts the following month.