Coinbase just spent $375 million to replace your investment bank 😳🏦; Citi’s Q3 2025: why the banking giant at $100 is a value trap, not a value play 📊🏦

FinTech is Eating the World, 22 October

Hey Everyone,

Good day & happy Wednesday! Today, all eyes are on Coinbase, which just spent $375 million to replace your investment bank (what their Echo M&A is all about & why it’s a master play at scale + bonus dives into Coinbase, their agentic finance protocol & more reads inside), and Citi’s Q3 2025 financials (breaking down the latest numbers, what they mean & why the banking giant at $100 is a value trap, not a value play + a bonus deep dive into JPMorgan’s Q3 2025 inside). So let’s jump straight into the interesting stuff 🌶️

Coinbase just spent $375 million to replace your investment bank 😳🏦

The news 🗞️ Digital assets giant Coinbase COIN 0.00%↑ has just acquired Echo, an onchain fundraising platform, for approximately $375 million in a combination of cash and stock.

This transaction represents Coinbase’s 8th acquisition of the year and marks a significant expansion of the exchange’s capabilities beyond traditional cryptocurrency trading.

Let’s take a closer look at this, understand why it matters, and what’s next for Coinbase.