🔵 Coinbase’s $65B+ debut

PLUS: The largest SPAC ever.. April 14, 2021 [The Hustle] [The Hustle]( Americans have had it with toilet paper. After scrambling to buy $11B+ worth in 2020, sales in January were wiped and fell 4.3% YoY. The big idea [Coinbase logo]( Coinbase is eyeing a $65B+ public debut Internet browser Netscape went [public]( on Aug. 9, 1995. In the decades since that date, the phrase “Netscape moment” has been used to signal the mainstreaming of a new industry. Crypto-trading exchange Coinbase is going public today. With the NASDAQ setting a reference price of [$65B+](, it could be remembered as the crypto industry’s “Netscape moment.” In the lead-up to this listing… … Coinbase shared its Q1 2021 numbers; as detailed by VC Tanay Jaipuria, the results are [staggering](: - Users: 56m retail accounts and 7k institutional accounts - Revenue: $1.8B in Q1 2021, which was more than all their revenue in 2019 and 2020 combined - Market share: 11% of the entire crypto-economy trades on Coinbase, up from <5% in 2018 How is Coinbase doing so well? Jaipuria credits the exchange’s strong results to 2 things: - High take rates: Coinbase gets 95% of its revenue from transactions, and its current take rate from retail investors is quite high (up to 1.5% vs. 0.05% for institutions). - A crypto bull cycle: The take rate is being applied to increasing trading volumes as crypto is in its 4th bull cycle “As the price of Bitcoin has increased from $7K to ~$60K, trading volumes have increased fourfold (16X when annualized) from $80B (2019) to $335B (Q1 2021),” he writes. But such a juicy take rate brings competition And Jaipuria notes that a bear case for Coinbase is that its fees will fall as more players -- from consumer fintech (Square, PayPal), brokerages (Fidelity), crypto exchange (Gemini, Binance) -- take share. Crucially, the fintechs and brokerages can subsidize crypto trading with other business lines. Coinbase’s potential moat is the trusted brand it’s built. Either way, there will be countless Coinbase winners today from what could be the largest public debut since Facebook’s [$104B]( bonanza in 2012. [Share on Facebook]( [Share on Twitter]( [Send as email to a friend](mailto:?subject=The%20Hustle%20wrote%20something%20I%20think%20you%27ll%20like...%0A&body=Coinbase+is+eyeing+a+%2465B%2B+public+debut%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fthehustle.co%2F04142021-Coinbase%3Futm_campaign%3DWednesday%2BEmail%26utm_content%3D04142021-Coinbase%26utm_medium%3Demail%26utm_source%3Ddaily%0A%0AYou%20can%20subscribe%20with%20my%20link%20here%20to%20get%20the%20latest%20in%20tech%20and%20business%20daily:%0A [View on our website]( Snippets - J&J hit a snag after federal health officials recommended [pausing]( vaccinations so they can review 6 rare cases of blood clotting among the nearly 7m people who already received the shot. - Absolutely epic: Fortnite maker Epic Games [raised]( $1B in funding at a $28.7B valuation. The most ironic investor on the list: the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board. - Is your company worth over $100B? Sen. Josh Hawley unveiled the “Trust-Busting for the Twenty-First Century Act” that would [ban]( mergers and acquisitions by companies valued $100B+. - IBM’s IT business is spinning off. It’s called [Kyndryl](, and despite sounding like a variety of Benadryl for your next of kin, the new name is meant to enhance the brand’s focus on customer relationships. - Tourism and 2020 don’t go together, but Bandwango made it work. The Utah-based startup that connects businesses and tourism bureaus with local communities saw its customer base double in 2020 and just [raised]( $3.1m. - Need a fix: Katrina Lake -- the founder and CEO of [Stitch Fix](, the personalized clothing retailer -- will step down from her role and become executive chairperson. Lake was the youngest woman to take a company public when $SFIX IPO’d in November 2017.  On fire [wood]( The skyrocketing cost of lumber, explained Wood is typically used for building roofs. Now it’s known for blasting through them. Lumber [prices]( are up nearly 260% since April 2020, following a perfect storm of surging demand and diminished supply. And it all started with a simple backlog... At the start of the pandemic, sawmills anticipated weak demand and limited [production]( by up to 30%. To their surprise, demand turned out stronger than ever: - DIY boom: While the US economy [shrank]( 3.5% in 2020, spending on home improvements and repairs grew 3%+ - Low interest rates: In December, US new housing starts hit a 14-year [high]( Despite wood production hitting a [13-year high]( in February, supply hasn’t caught up with demand -- and now ~70% of builders are [raising]( home prices to slow demand down. The result is a [$24k+]( increase in the average price of single-family homes since April 2020. European beetles are now coming in clutch Not those European beetles. A literal beetle infestation across Europe is [boosting]( logging there, and Europe’s share of US lumber imports reached a record high of [13%]( in 2020. Those imports are critical to the US lumber supply as British Columbia has reduced production by over a third in 5 years. In conclusion… (We wanted to end this piece with a joke about lumber, but we just couldn’t think of any that wood work.) [Share on Facebook]( [Share on Twitter]( [Send as email to a friend](mailto:?subject=The%20Hustle%20wrote%20something%20I%20think%20you%27ll%20like...%0A&body=The+skyrocketing+cost+of+lumber%2C+explained%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fthehustle.co%2F04142021-%3Futm_campaign%3DCoinbase%26utm_content%3D04142021-%26utm_medium%3Demail%26utm_source%3Ddaily%0A%0AYou%20can%20subscribe%20with%20my%20link%20here%20to%20get%20the%20latest%20in%20tech%20and%20business%20daily:%0A [View on our website]( Podcast Jake Paul Wants to Be the Next Jay-Z … and he just might. Sounds crazy? He’s already built a media empire he claims has generated billions for platforms. He’s gone from social media phenom to one of the biggest names in boxing. Now he’s investing in startups. He breaks down where he’s investing on today’s My First Million. 🎧 Listen below: SPAC News [map]( If you’re a superapp and you don’t have a presence in SEA, are you even a superapp? (Source: WorldAtlas) The largest SPAC ever Southeast Asian superapp Grab announced plans to go public by partnering with Altimeter Growth Corp., a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), [Axios]( reports. The kicker: At an equity value at $39.6B, it would be the largest SPAC ever. Grab was founded in 2011 as a ride-hailing startup Since then, the Singapore-based company has added a digital wallet, food delivery, and more to its offering. As we previously detailed, [650m+]( people -- nearly twice the US population -- live in 11 countries across Southeast Asia. Many of these locales have underdeveloped infrastructure, which creates the space for “superapps” to thrive by providing one-touch access to finance, transportation, and logistics. Grab -- once called the Uber of Asia -- is competing with 2 other players to be the region’s superapp: - Indonesia-based GoJek, valued at [$10B+]( - Singapore-based Sea Limited, valued at [$120B+]( The largest SPAC ever hits… … as US regulators are reviewing SPAC accounting practices per the [Wall Street Journal](. This change could make a SPAC look less financially attractive than it would otherwise be. With SPACs raising more in the first 3 months of 2021 ([$88B+]() than all of 2020 ($83.4B), the extra scrutiny seems warranted. [Share on Facebook]( [Share on Twitter]( [Send as email to a friend](mailto:?subject=The%20Hustle%20wrote%20something%20I%20think%20you%27ll%20like...%0A&body=The+largest+SPAC+ever%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fthehustle.co%2F04142021-largest-SPAC-ever%3Futm_campaign%3DCoinbase%26utm_content%3D04142021-largest-SPAC-ever%26utm_medium%3Demail%26utm_source%3Ddaily%0A%0AYou%20can%20subscribe%20with%20my%20link%20here%20to%20get%20the%20latest%20in%20tech%20and%20business%20daily:%0A [View on our website]( TRENDS A 7-figure business with a $500 3D printer... Have you read this week’s Trends report? If you haven’t, you might have missed: - How one individual built a business selling[dried hibiscus flowers]( on Amazon that brings in $101k/month - How a[$500 3D printer]( can be used to build a 7-figure business with 90% profit margins - Which niche industry is set to 5X by 2023 - And much more. To read the full reports[try Trends for one full week for just $1](. During your one-week trial, you’ll also get access to exclusive livestreamed lectures, our growing database of upcoming market opportunities, and our private network of entrepreneurs, founders, and investors from around the world. [All for a buck.]( [Read the Full Reports →]( Stat of the day [chart] Higher up and further to the right (Source: PNGKey) CEO pay was up in 2020. [The Wall Street Journal]( crunched the numbers  for CEOs of 300+ public companies and found that the total median compensation reached $13.7m (vs. $12.8m) in the year prior. These numbers come even as many businesses were ravaged by the pandemic. The WSJ notes shareholder backlash against lavish pay packages is on the rise: A dozen major companies -- including Starbucks and Walgreens -- recently lost bids to up CEO pay. SHARE THE HUSTLE [Hustle Cons Greatest Hits ebook]( Over the years, we’ve learned… secrets. The business secrets, tips, and tricks that have helped founders go from zero to millions -- and even billions -- of dollars. Want to see ‘em? Just refer 3 more friends to The Hustle and we’ll send you our curated set of interviews with founders from brands like Zola, AWAY, Vungle, Bonobos, and more. Here’s a message you can use to share with your friends: Hey! Do you read The Hustle? It’s the best daily business newsletter out there -- only takes 5 minutes to read and you’ll sound like the smartest person in the room. Sign up here, it’s free: [ P.S. You can always check your referral count [here](. [Share The Hustle →]( How did you like today’s email? Today's email was brought to you by[Trung Phan](, [Jacob Cohen](. Editing by: Brad “Netscape moment” Wolverton, Les Tan (Sunscreen Provisioner). [PODCAST]( [JOBS]( [CONTACT US](mailto:news@thehustle.co) [Facebook]( [Youtube]( [Instagram]( [Trends]( 2131 THEO DR. 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