Coinbase executive reveals exchange’s global expansion plans

• Coinbase’s VP of International Strategy Tom Gordon recently appeared in a Bankless podcast to discuss Coinbase’s international ambitions.
• The executive clarified that currently there are no plans to move the crypto exchange’s headquarters out of the United States.

Tom Duff Gordon, the Vice President of International Policy at American crypto exchange Coinbase, recently appeared in a podcast with Bankless.

The executive shared his take on the current regulatory landscape in the United States for crypto and Coinbase’s international expansion efforts, among several other topics. 

Coinbase has no plans to shift headquarters abroad

Coinbase revealed last month that it had secured a regulatory license from the Bermuda Monetary Authority to operate in the British Overseas Territory.

The news led to widespread speculation about a possible offshore shift for the crypto exchange, in light of the legal tussle with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. However, Tom Gordon revealed in the podcast that the exchange doesn’t plan on leaving the U.S. anytime soon. 

As far as the Bermuda license is concerned, Gordon revealed that it was part of a broader effort from Coinbase to penetrate the growing international market for crypto derivatives.

The crypto exchange’s global push will focus on select regions that offer the most regulatory clarity for crypto and thus have the most favorable market to operate in. The Coinbase executive named a few including the United Kingdom, Singapore, Australia, Canada, and Brazil among others. 

Gordon clarified that the overseas expansion efforts will not affect the exchange’s domestic ambitions. When asked if there was a possibility to shift the company’s headquarters abroad, the executive stated that the current plan was to stay in the U.S. and fight for regulatory clarity.

Comparing the regulatory approach to crypto in U.S. and abroad, Gordon stated that non-U.S. regulators recognize that certain elements of crypto assets cannot be categorized under existing financial instruments and therefore require tailored rules to be regulated.

Meanwhile, American regulators are more concerned about the distinction between securities and commodities in crypto. 

“The distinction that we care about outside the U.S. is, are these things existing financial instruments or not,” Tom Gordon stated.

Expanding on the company’s international strategy, Gordon stated that the current crypto policy of Bermuda makes it an exciting destination for Coinbase to set up its international derivatives trading platform.