Coinbase acquires One River Digital Asset Management

Coinbase has acquired One River Digital Asset Management (ORDAM) to offer institutional clients investment advice.

The purchase, announced on Friday (March 3), is designed to further Coinbase’s “goal of bridging institutions and the crypto-economy,” the cryptocurrency company said on its blog. It comes as Coinbase increases its focus on regulation as the industry faces increased pressure from federal authorities.

As part of the deal, ORDAM – a subsidiary of One River Asset Management – ​​will be renamed Coinbase Asset Management.

The two companies have worked together before, with ORDAM using Coinbase Prime for investment solutions under a partnership announced last year, as PYMNTS reported.

“Coinbase and ORDAM share an ethos based on sound risk management, a trait that has enabled both firms to successfully navigate the recent market turmoil,” the announcement said. “Culturally, our two organizations are strongly aligned in pursuing the opportunity in digital assets with an uncompromising priority on security and soundness.”

During a conference call with investors last month, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said that — in addition to expanding the crypto’s worldwide user base to 1 billion — the company was focusing on regulation.

“Policies are my top priority for this year. … Coinbase has an important role to play around crypto education, advocacy and policy,” Armstrong said, telling investors he had spent a lot of time in DC working with lawmakers.

“There’s a lot of excitement about the potential and the desire to have this built here in America by people who realize that the U.S. is a little bit behind right now,” he added. “The EU has already adopted comprehensive legislation, and policymakers see others moving in that direction. There is a lot of bipartisan support to get legislation passed.”

But despite Armtrong’s hopes for crypto legislation in the US, PYMNTS has recently argued that the sector faces an increasingly uncertain future.

Last week, British banks HSBC and Nationwide Building Society announced a ban on the purchase of cryptocurrency using credit cards for their retail customers, as well as tougher restrictions on debit card purchases of crypto, with a new daily limit of £5,000.

And in the US, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is continuing its pressure on the digital asset industry by warning investment advisers that cryptocurrency trading and lending platforms are not qualified custodians.

“When these platforms fail — as we’ve seen time and time again — investors’ assets have often become the property of the failed company, leaving investors in line at bankruptcy court,” SEC Chairman Gary Gensler said Thursday (March 2).