Coinbase Obtains UK Approval to Add Equities and Derivatives

Nasdaq-listed Coinbase has gained British regulatory clearance to provide traditional investment products such as equities and derivatives in addition to its digital asset services.

Coinbase expands its UK product suite with new license. The authorization lets institutional and advanced traders deal in perpetual futures across crypto, equities and commodities. British retail investors will gain the chance to buy and sell equities directly on the platform for the first time.

This permission joins Coinbase’s existing U.K. e-money license and crypto registration. The firm obtained FCA cryptoasset registration in February 2025, which permitted it to deliver both crypto and fiat services locally.

The approval advances Coinbase's Everything Exchange strategy. That initiative encompasses stocks, crypto derivatives, tokenized assets, prediction markets and consumer finance offerings. The U.K. approval supplies a regulated pathway for Coinbase to broaden its business beyond crypto ahead of the country’s complete crypto rule set scheduled for October 2027.

British clients will now reach products the exchange has introduced in other jurisdictions. American customers already enjoy stock and exchange-traded fund trading. Qualifying non-U.S. clients can already transact in USDC-settled perpetual futures tied to large-cap names such as Apple, Microsoft and Tesla.

Coinbase plans tokenized stocks for non-U.S. users. The company has said it plans to offer tokenized stocks backed one-for-one by U.S. equities to eligible non-U.S. users. Those products are meant to give investors ownership of the underlying shares, including dividends.

Coinbase described the license as supporting its goal of operating an “Everything Exchange” inside one of its biggest overseas markets.