Coinbase Launches Ethereum Layer Two Scaling Network Base
Coinbase, one of the world’s leading cryptocurrency exchanges, has announced the launch of Base, an Ethereum layer two (L2) scaling network. After developers launched the Base testnet on Thursday, Coinbase is now incubating Base within the company and the L2 chain will progressively decentralize over time.
Coinbase is joining the competition of Ethereum L2 scaling projects, such as Polygon, Arbitrum, Optimism, Loopring, Starknet, and others, by launching an L2 called Base. On Twitter, Coinbase stated, “Base is an Ethereum L2 that offers a secure, low-cost, developer-friendly way for anyone, anywhere, to build decentralized apps. Our goal with Base is to make onchain the next online and onboard 1B+ users into the crypto economy.”
The cryptocurrency exchange explained that Base will be open-source and will leverage Optimism’s OP Stack. Coinbase detailed it is also collaborating with Optimism. “We see this toolkit as an open platform that anyone can contribute to, fork, and extend to help the crypto economy scale,” Coinbase’s blog post said. Initially, Coinbase will have more control, but Base’s vision is to become fully permissionless over time.
Coinbase also announced the launch of a Base Ecosystem Fund to support early-stage projects working with Base, as long as they meet the company’s investment criteria. Like many L2 platforms, Base will offer lower fees than the cost to transact onchain with Ethereum. This week ETH fees are higher than usual, and the L2 protocol Arbitrum, which offers lower fees, outpaced Ethereum’s daily transaction count.
When Coinbase launched the Base testnet, people on social media complained about a bumpy start. Coinbase Web3 developer Roberto Bayardo explained that the issue was fixed and noted that a lot of people were bridging. “We’re submitting the contracts for verification now,” Bayardo added.
Coinbase’s entry into the Ethereum L2 scaling space with the launch of Base is a welcome development for the crypto community. With the launch of Base, users will be able to enjoy lower fees and faster transactions on the Ethereum network. This is a great step forward for the Ethereum ecosystem and will help to further drive adoption of the blockchain.