Coinbase is in the news again with another acquisition. This time, the crypto company has acquired the core leadership team of DeFi derivatives protocol Opyn, including Andrew Leone and Joe Clark, as part of its crypto-native derivatives strategy. The deal is a talent acquisition and does not include Opyn’s protocol or assets.
The latest acquisition makes it the sixth one for Coinbase in 2025 so far, nearly one every month. The company joins the likes of Ripple, which has made incessant acquisitions. It’s been a busy year for both companies, which plan to continue making purchases that align with their objectives and vision.
Coinbase Extols the Opyn Team
In a blog post, Coinbase heaped praises on the Opyn Team, calling it a team with a strong understanding of traditional market structure. “The Opyn team has been building in DeFi since the early days; they were the first DeFi options protocol, the inventors of Power Perpetuals, and the team behind Squeeth. The team brings a rare combination of deep on-chain technical expertise and hands-on experience building decentralized products from the ground up.”
A member of the Coinbase team said the company acquired it because it operates with a “build/buy/partners/invest framework. He added that Clark’s and Leone’s deep experience in building in DeFi captured their attention and aligns with Coinbase’s vision for the future on-chain markets strategy. Clark and Leone will join the on-chain markets team to focus on Verified pools and other initiatives for on-chain market offerings.
The crypto company said its decision to move Clark and Leone to on-chain markets will bridge DeFi and institutional finance. “It’s a move that aligns with where the market is going, and where we believe it should go,” Aklil Ibassa, Coinbase’s Head of Corporate Development and M&A, revealed. Opyn was once scrutinized by the U.S. SEC, but has since settled with the regulatory body.
Coinbase’s Opyn’s Acquisition will Broaden Derivatives Offering
While Coinbase will fast-track on-chain integration and make it more accessible with the Opyn team, it will also integrate corporate-grade DeFi into the company’s derivatives offering. Given the institutional-grade expertise of Leone and Clark, Coinbase’s on-chain pools will have enhanced transparency and liquidity, which could reduce settlement times.
On-chain order books will increase auditability, projecting Coinbase as a compliant and transparent institution. This will also open the door to institutional access and more partnerships. The company could launch new on-chain products, such as tokenized instruments or high-asset pools, which benefit the ecosystem.
Coinbase will not only blend centralization with on-chain functionality but also encourage third-party development. The company may enable developers to build third-party dApps on top of their on-chain market structure.
Former Binance Lead Joins Coinbase
As part of its talent acquisition, former Binance community lead Alex has also joined Coinbase as Head of Crypto Twitter (CT) Communications. Alex announced on his X handle.
He revealed he chose Coinbase because they were the best in the industry. But, they’ve been getting a lot of stick, and that part of the solution is on Twitter. “The new focus is making comms more social, native, direct, transparent, and engaging,” he said.
“That’s the path to building a bigger appreciation for everything they’ve contributed to this space (which is a lot), and to help reconnect with CT. They’re already working on it, and I’ve joined to be a part of that change. It’s a big job, it won’t be easy, and that’s why I took it. I spent an entire year wondering where I was going to work next.”
Alex’s appointment will improve public perception and strengthen community engagement. Following Coinbase’s welcome announcement, the company updated its Twitter profile picture to a Pengu NFT.
