Coinbase Offers DeFi Yield Product To Users In 70 Countries
In an effort to make decentralized finance (DeFi) more accessible to its customers, major US cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase says it is allowing users in 70 countries to buy a lucrative DeFi product using its DAI crypto holdings.
The exchange makes DeFi “more convenient and affordable for customers,” as “eligible users can now access attractive DeFi returns from the comfort of their Coinbase account with just a few taps and no network fees,” the exchange said. in the statement adding:
“Starting today, you will be able to generate income from DeFi on Dai, a stablecoin that is designed to be pegged to the US dollar.”
Coinbase says the latest launch marks just the beginning of its global expansion into DeFi, and the exchange will continue to “explore ways” to allow customers to leverage “a wider range of assets and more DeFi protocols.”
According to the exchange, the list of 70 countries in which Coinbase customers will be allowed to purchase a DeFi yield product includes the UK, Germany and Spain, but not the US.
Coinbase says that when its customers agree to receive income from DeFi, their DAI will be deposited with Compound Finance (COMP), one of the main DeFi protocols.
The Proposed Annual Percentage Yield (APY) “varies based on Compound rates and will automatically update to reflect changes in the market. Compound rates are variable – for example, in October, the annual interest rate on DAI delivery fluctuated between 2.83% and 5.39%, ”the statement said.
The latest development comes after US regulators earlier this year scrapped Coinbase’s plans to offer another product of interest to its customers. Last September, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) threatened to sue the exchange if Coinbase allowed its users to invest in a loan that was supposed to offer 4% returns, Bloomberg reported.
Alesya Haas, CFO at Coinbase, said last Wednesday in her speech to Congress that the company still “doesn’t understand why our product hasn’t been allowed to continue.”
