Coinbase Wins Citi Upgrade on Crypto Regulatory Optimism

(Bloomberg) — Coinbase Global Inc. shares soared this year, and the potential for the rally to forge ahead has pushed Citigroup to upgrade the stock.

The cryptocurrency trading platform was raised to buy from neutral at Citi in a Tuesday note, as analyst Peter Christiansen said the possibility of a friendlier regulatory environment for the digital asset industry — and Coinbase specifically — has changed his view on the company.

“Shifts in the U.S. Election landscape and the Supreme Court’s overturning of the long-standing Chevron precedent has changed our view on Coinbase’s regulatory risks,” Christiansen wrote. “We surmise the upside opportunity from a more conducive regulatory environment to be too large to ignore.”

Coinbase shares have jumped by 48% this year, adding more than $21 billion in market capitalization, rallying alongside other crypto-linked companies as Bitcoin advanced.

Last year, the US Securities and Exchange Commission sued Coinbase, alleging securities rules violations. Christiansen argues the Supreme Court’s recent overturning of a legal doctrine known as Chevron, which had empowered federal regulators to interpret unclear laws, could give the crypto-trading platform additional flexibility in its defense.

Additionally, the analyst said that the upcoming US election results are shifting more favorably toward the crypto industry. President Joe Biden’s time in office had led “many to conclude that potential for pro-crypto legislation would fare better under a different administration,” he wrote, noting that former president Donald Trump is expected to speak at an upcoming Bitcoin conference.

Citi’s upgrade pushed the consensus recommendation from analysts tracked by Bloomberg to the most positive level in about two years. Meanwhile, the return potential — or expected share-price performance for the stock over the next 12 months, according to analysts’ target prices — calls for a slight decline of 1.5%.

In contrast, Christiansen’s new price target of $345 indicates he thinks the stock could rally by about one-third.

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