Coinbase couldn't attract Maker trading in 2018, but is now seeing 'high-volume' interest

If at first you don't succeed, then try, try, and try again. That's the approach Coinbase appears to be taking when it comes to listing new tokens. The San Francisco exchange announced yesterday that it would support trading of Maker, EOS, and Augur, but market observers might have had a case of déjà vu reading the news. This is the second time the firm has announced that Coinbase Pro, its professional trading platform, is offering Maker trading, following a previous announcement in December.

The Block has learnt that Coinbase was unable to secure the necessary amount of liquidity to establish a proper order-book for the coin after it started accepting inbound transfers of it at the end of 2018. It was the same story for Zilliqa, which was promptly delisted alongside Maker.

Interestingly, neither Zilliqa and Maker were available to U.S. customers in December; a sign Coinbase might have had trouble drumming up interest from its international client base. Or, because trading of Zilliqa and Maker even in the US was too low at that time. Either way, it appears the environment has changed for Maker.

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"Maker volume has been higher recently and we've seen interest from high-volume customers outside the U.S.," a person familiar with the situation told The Block.

As for its price, Maker has experienced an impressive run-up since Coinbase's first announcement, almost doubling in price since the beginning of the year to the end of March. 

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Frank Chaparro is Host of The Scoop podcast and Director of Special Projects. He also writes a biweekly newsletter. Chaparro started his career at Business Insider, where he specialized in the intersection of digital assets and Wall Street, market structure, and financial technology. Soon after joining Business Insider out of Fordham University, Chaparro was interviewing top finance and tech executives, including billionaire Mark Cuban, “Flash Boys” star Brad Katsuyama, Cboe Global Markets CEO Ed Tilly, and New York Stock Exchange President Tom Farley. In 2018, he become a sought after reporter in the crypto world, interviewing luminaries such as Tyler Winklevoss, the cofounder of Gemini, Jeremy Allaire, the CEO of Circle, and Fundstrat head Tom Lee. For inquiries or tips, email [email protected].