New York, Jan 5, 2026, 17:41 (ET) — After-hours
- Coinbase shares were up 7.8% after the bell, hovering near $255.
- Goldman Sachs upgraded the stock to “buy” and lifted its price target to $303.
- Traders are watching crypto price momentum into U.S. jobs data on Jan. 9.
Coinbase Global Inc shares were up 7.8% at $254.92 in after-hours trading on Monday, after ranging between $245.30 and $258.83 during the regular session.
The move matters because Coinbase often trades as a fast-reacting proxy for crypto risk appetite. When bitcoin and trading volumes rise, the stock can respond sharply; the reverse is also true.
Wall Street’s focus has shifted from pure trading fees toward “infrastructure” revenue — steadier lines tied to servicing clients rather than the day-to-day swings in crypto prices. That debate has become a near-term catalyst for crypto-linked equities.
Goldman Sachs upgraded Coinbase to “buy” from “neutral” and lifted its price target to $303 from $294, analysts led by James Yaro wrote. “We see an attractive entry point for COIN, and higher valuation over time as it shifts from cyclical to structural growth,” the team wrote. Decrypt
Goldman said it was “selectively constructive” on brokers and crypto for 2026, assuming resilient retail trading and further U.S. regulatory progress. It also said Coinbase’s “subscriptions and services” segment has risen to about 40% of revenue from under 5% five years ago — lines that include custody (holding crypto for clients) and staking (earning rewards for helping validate blockchains). Investing.com
Bitcoin’s rally provided a tailwind, with the token hitting $94,320 and lifting crypto-related stocks. Barron’s said Robinhood jumped 7% in the regular session as crypto-linked equities moved higher.
With COIN ending the day near its upper range, traders will be watching whether the move holds into Tuesday’s regular session, or fades as the initial catalyst digests.
Separately, Coinbase has paused parts of its Argentina fiat services: from Jan. 31, users will no longer be able to buy or sell USDC — a dollar-pegged stablecoin — using Argentine pesos or withdraw funds to local bank accounts, while crypto-to-crypto activity remains available, Cointelegraph reported.
But the stock’s sensitivity to crypto prices cuts both ways. A pullback in bitcoin or weaker exchange volumes would pressure transaction revenue, while expansion into new products such as tokenized assets — digital tokens that represent traditional securities — depends on how regulators set the rules.
Next up, investors will watch the U.S. employment report on Jan. 9 and consumer price data on Jan. 13, with the Federal Reserve’s next policy meeting scheduled for Jan. 27-28 — events that can swing rate expectations and risk appetite, and often ripple into crypto prices.
