Coinbase is in advanced talks to purchase Deribit, the world's largest cryptocurrency options trading platform, according to a Bloomberg report published March 21. The potential acquisition comes as derivatives trading gains popularity in the cryptocurrency market as reported by BTC Peers..

Deribit holds a dominant position in Bitcoin and Ethereum options trading. The platform would expand Coinbase's derivatives offerings, which currently center on futures contracts. The combination would bring together complementary business models in the crypto derivatives space.

Both companies have already informed Dubai regulators about their ongoing discussions. Since Deribit operates under a Dubai license, any final agreement would require transferring this regulatory approval to Coinbase, according to unnamed sources cited by Bloomberg.

Reports from January valued Deribit between $4 billion and $5 billion in a potential deal with Coinbase. Deribit's platform offers options, futures, and spot cryptocurrency trading, with total volumes reaching about $1.2 trillion last year.

This potential acquisition follows a broader trend in the industry. Just one day earlier, on March 20, competitor Kraken announced plans to buy derivatives trading platform NinjaTrader for approximately $1.5 billion.

The cryptocurrency derivatives market is growing rapidly in the US. These financial instruments allow traders to:

• Buy or sell assets at future dates, often with leverage
• Hedge against market volatility
• Speculate on price movements without owning the underlying assets

Coinbase reported that derivatives trading volumes grew by approximately 10,950% in 2024. The company currently lists derivatives for 92 different assets on its international exchange and a smaller selection in the US market.

Other companies are also expanding in this area. Robinhood launched cryptocurrency futures in January, while CME Group reported an average daily trading volume of about $10 billion for crypto derivatives in Q4 2024—more than 300% higher than the previous year.

The market shows strong institutional crypto confidence beyond just exchanges. Polymarket data from February revealed traders assigned a 97% probability that MicroStrategy would purchase additional Bitcoin, with $661,565 in trading volume supporting this prediction. MicroStrategy had already bought 19,157 Bitcoin for $1.1 billion in January 2024.