Coinbase to Join S&P 500, Stock Soars on Institutional Milestone
Shares of Coinbase (COIN) spiked more than 8% in post-market trading Monday after it was announced that the crypto exchange will be added to the S&P 500 index, marking a major breakthrough for the digital asset industry in traditional finance.
The company will officially join the benchmark U.S. stock index on May 19, replacing Discover Financial, which is set to be acquired by Capital One. Coinbase currently trades on Nasdaq and holds a market capitalization of nearly $53 billion.
Inclusion in the S&P 500 signals a new level of legitimacy for crypto’s biggest public firm, and will expose it to a broader range of institutional and retail investors. The index tracks 500 of the most influential U.S.-listed companies across various sectors.
“This marks a turning point,” said Juan Leon, senior investment strategist at Bitwise Asset Management. “Being added to the S&P 500 will significantly boost COIN’s visibility and liquidity—every major fund tracking the index will now need to own it.”
The stock surged to $225 in after-hours trading, building on Monday’s nearly 4% intraday gain.
Analysts note that the move reflects crypto’s deepening ties to Wall Street and could open the door for more blockchain-native firms to gain recognition in legacy financial benchmarks.
