Coinbase Blends Stocks and Crypto With 24/5 UK Equity Trading
Eligible UK customers can now trade nearly 4,000 US shares in the same app as their crypto holdings, with tokenized equities still to come.
Coinbase is rolling out conventional US equity trading to eligible customers in the United Kingdom, bringing nearly 4,000 stocks into the same application as crypto and fiat balances. The service operates 24 hours a day, five days a week, offers fractional orders from £1 and charges no commission.
Customers can fund purchases in sterling or USDC. The shares are conventional securities rather than tokens, with custody and execution provided through Apex Clearing and Coinbase Capital Markets Corporation. The launch follows an expansion of the permissions attached to Coinbase UK's MiFID licence.
The company has described tokenized equities as a future step and says it is working with policymakers, but that infrastructure is not part of the product announced today. The distinction matters: a longer trading window and unified interface do not by themselves place the stock on a blockchain.
Why it matters
The launch is a clear example of crypto platforms moving into mainstream brokerage. It raises the competitive pressure on investment apps while testing whether customers value one balance sheet and one interface across fiat, stablecoins, crypto assets and stocks. It also separates the immediate commercial opportunity from the more complex regulatory work needed for tokenized securities.
Source: The Block