Crypto exchange giant Coinbase teased on X a potential launch of a tokenized bitcoin product under the ticker name cbBTC.

This product appears to be named similarly to Coinbase’s Ethereum staking derivative product, cbETH.

While further details were not provided, a subsequent post from the exchange stated, “coming soon,” suggesting the launch may take place soon. These tokenized bitcoin products are backed 1:1 with actual bitcoin held in custody.

Coinbase's upcoming product could potentially allow for holding bitcoin on Ethereum and Layer 2 chains, acting as a source of liquidity for users and within Base, the blockchain incubated by Coinbase. Following Coinbase’s post on X, Base’s lead, Jesse Pollak, stated that he loved bitcoin and that his team was “going to build a massive bitcoin economy on Base.”

When cbBTC goes live, it will compete with Bitgo’s wrapped bitcoin ( WBTC -0.47% ), currently the largest tokenized BTC product with a market cap of over $9 billion. This development coincides with BitGo, the custodian of WBTC, announcing a partnership with BiT Global (linked to Tron founder Justin Sun) to manage WBTC custody.

BitGo announced it will become a minority owner in a joint venture with Hong Kong-based BiT Global, aiming to offer “multi-jurisdictional and multi-institutional custody” for the WBTC business. This development, influenced by Sun’s controversial reputation and the potential centralization of control, has raised security concerns.

Consequently, Maker DAO’s risk team, Block Analitica Labs, proposed halting new borrowing against WBTC collateral. In defense, BitGo CEO Mike Belshe emphasized the firm’s commitment to security and the legal oversight of BitGo and BiT Global.