Coinbase develops new service to target Australia’s $664b pension market

U.S. crypto exchange Coinbase is working on a new product offering digital assets for Australia’s growing self-managed pensions sector.

Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase is developing a yet-to-be-announced service that would offer crypto investment products for portfolios that make up about a quarter of Australia‘s $2.5 trillion pension system, Bloomberg reports, citing Coinbase Asia-Pacific managing director John O’Loghlen.

Speaking on the matter, O’Loghlen hinted that the exchange’s new solution is designed to cater to clients who may only make a single allocation with the service provider rather than engaging in regular or recurring transactions.

“Self-managed super funds might just make a single allocation and set it and forget it. We are working on an offering to service those clients really well on a one-off basis — to have them trade with us and stay with us.” John O’Loghlen

It’s unclear, however, when exactly Coinbase plans to roll out its new service. The exchange’s new product comes as reports indicate Australia is gearing up to embrace spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) following their approvals in the U.S. and Hong Kong.

As crypto.news reported in late April, the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) is anticipated to greenlight the first spot Bitcoin ETFs for the main board by the end of 2024. At least several issuers are already working on launching their products on ASX, including BetaShares, VanEck, and DigitalX. However, a specific timeline for the approval of spot crypto ETFs is yet to be clarified.

Jamie Hannah, deputy head of investments and capital markets for VanEck Australia, believes that self-managed superannuation programs, which hold about a quarter of the country’s $2.3 trillion pension market, could emerge as key buyers of spot-crypto funds.