Coinbase is pushing to expand its crypto-financial offerings in Canada, but the company believes the current regulatory framework is insufficient to support this move. Eric Richmond, Coinbase Canada's new CEO, stated that for the region to accommodate the next phase of industry development, it needs to move from temporary exemptions and case-by-case approvals to long-term, unified digital asset rules.
During an event in Toronto, Richmond stated that Coinbase's goal in Canada is not only to offer crypto trading, but also to gradually expand its coverage to include more blockchain-based financial services, including derivatives, decentralized financial services, and tokenized assets.
The existing framework is still mainly a temporary arrangement.
Canada was among the first countries to approve spot crypto ETFs and has established a registration system for crypto trading platforms, and passed a stablecoin bill this year. However, Richmond believes that these developments largely depend on regulatory notices, interim guidance, and exemptions for individual companies, rather than codified laws specifically for digital assets.
He stated that this approach helped accelerate implementation in the early stages of the industry, but as platforms seek to launch more complex products, the existing methods are no longer sufficient. For businesses, clearer long-term rules help reduce the scope for legal interpretation and also make regulatory requirements more consistent across different provinces.
Gap exists between US and Canadian product access.
Coinbase stated that it hopes to bring some of its existing US products to Canadian users, but this is currently subject to local regulations. For example, US Coinbase One users can use stablecoin lending services with an annualized return of approximately 7%; Canadian users currently primarily hold USDC, earning a maximum return of approximately 4.5%.
Regarding derivatives, Coinbase also hopes to offer some crypto futures products to eligible Canadian clients through its subsidiary Coinbase Financial Markets, which is regulated by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Richmond stated that this arrangement is feasible because the company has obtained an "international exemption" granted by Canadian regulators.
However, Coinbase will need to obtain additional approvals to expand the product to a wider range of retail customers. Richmond believes this is not entirely a matter of approval speed; the bigger difference lies in the different regulatory structures of the two countries.
The company calls for the establishment of unified national rules.
Richmond stated that Canadian regulators are continuously listening to industry feedback and are willing to explore new regulatory frameworks for digital asset products. He specifically mentioned the stablecoin bill passed in Canada this year as one of the positive developments.
Following the passage of the bill, Tetra Trust, backed by Wealthsimple, Shopify, and the National Bank of Canada, launched CADD, Canada's first Canadian dollar stablecoin issued by a regulated financial institution.
Richmond argues that Canada should further incorporate existing practices into nationally unified rules, rather than continuing to allow companies to interpret various guidelines and exemptions themselves. The "national instrument" he refers to is a set of harmonized rules adopted jointly by provincial and territorial securities regulators.
He believes that if Canada can establish a consistent inter-provincial system, it will be more conducive to the implementation of products such as payments, derivatives, tokenized securities and DeFi, and will also shorten the time lag for Canadian users to obtain related services.
