How is the plummeting value of the rial affecting Iranians?

Coinbase has brought four 1:1-backed U.S. stock products to Base, allowing eligible non-U.S. investors to trade Apple, NVIDIA, Meta and Alphabet exposure around the clock.

Base said in an Aug. 25 announcement that Coinbase Tokenized Stocks are now available natively on the Ethereum layer-2 network, moving a product previously offered by the exchange into an open onchain environment.

The initial list includes NVIDIA under the ticker NVDAc, Meta as METAc, Apple as AAPLc, and Alphabet as GOOGLc. Base published a separate prospectus and contract address for each asset, asking users to verify the address before buying because tokens outside the official list were not issued by Coinbase.

Coinbase tokenized stocks use beneficial ownership structure

Under the product’s legal structure, each B20 token represents a beneficial interest in an underlying share rather than a synthetic contract that only follows its market price.

Coinbase Onchain SPV Ltd., a Coinbase-controlled company incorporated in the Abu Dhabi Global Market, formally issues the securities. According to the NVIDIA prospectus, the Financial Services Regulatory Authority approved the document on Aug. 4 under ADGM rules.

For every token issued, the special-purpose company initially holds one corresponding share through a segregated custody account. The prospectus identifies Alpaca Securities, an SEC-registered broker-dealer and FINRA and SIPC member, as the broker and custodian responsible for buying, selling, and holding the underlying equities.

Deposited shares are held in trust for tokenholders, according to the filing. Subject to the validity of the trust arrangements under ADGM law, the assets would not form part of the issuer’s property if the special-purpose company entered bankruptcy or insolvency.

Base describes the tokens as beneficial claims that provide direct economic exposure to the listed companies. Although Coinbase has promoted the structure as “real 1:1 backed tokenized stocks,” the prospectus draws a distinction between beneficial exposure and direct registration as the legal owner of each underlying share.

Holders also do not receive automatic voting rights in the underlying company. The filing states that verified, or “vested,” holders may send voting instructions to the issuer, which may try to vote the custodied shares on their behalf, subject to applicable law, timing, and practical limits.

In July, crypto.news reported Base’s preparations after network founder Jesse Pollak acknowledged that Robinhood had moved first by placing stock-linked products in an Ethereum-compatible setting.

“We’ve been behind on this on Base and I’m frustrated that’s the case,” Pollak said at the time, adding that the companies were close to introducing 1:1-backed equities.

B20 brings tokenized stocks into Base DeFi

Once issued as B20 tokens, the stock products can sit in self-custodial wallets and interact with supported decentralized applications. Base lists Aerodrome for tokenized-stock liquidity, while Aave, Morpho, and Euler provide or plan lending and borrowing functions.

Other listed integrations include 0x, 1inch, KyberSwap, and CoW Swap for token exchanges. Chainlink supplies price data infrastructure, while LI.FI and Jumper support services connected with cross-chain transfers and swaps.

Such integrations allow one token to move through several applications. For example, an eligible holder may trade a stock token through a decentralized exchange and later use it as collateral within a supported lending market, depending on the rules and availability of each protocol.

Trading can continue outside regular U.S. exchange hours, including weekends and American market holidays. Traditional shares listed on Nasdaq or the New York Stock Exchange still trade within their established sessions, meaning prices on decentralized venues could move when the primary market for the underlying security is closed.

Base said additional tickers will be introduced over the coming weeks, subject to regulatory approval. New listings would use the same B20 framework, allowing applications already integrated with the standard to support subsequent assets without building a separate system for each stock.

The launch follows Coinbase’s June rollout of tokenized exposure tied to NVIDIA, Alphabet, Strategy, BitMine and SpaceX. At that time, Coinbase said its products would support onchain trading, redemption, and distributions connected to the underlying shares.

Dividends are reinvested after taxes and fees

The prospectus does not provide for dividends to be paid directly to holders as cash. Instead, the issuer generally reinvests distributions received from the underlying company into additional shares, increasing the amount of underlying equity represented by each token through an adjusted deposit ratio.

Before reinvestment, the structure applies U.S. withholding tax. According to the NVIDIA filing, dividends paid to non-U.S. holders are currently subject to a 30% withholding rate unless an applicable tax treaty lowers it.

The issuer also charges a distribution fee equal to 5% of the gross value of dividends or other distributions before withholding taxes and reinvestment. Corporate actions, fees, and other costs can also change the deposit ratio over time.

Verified holders may request redemption in the underlying stock, U.S. dollars, or an accepted stablecoin such as USDC. A 0.05% redemption fee applies, while the issuer, broker, and custodian may conduct identity, anti-money laundering, sanctions, and jurisdiction checks before processing the request.

Redemption is not the same as immediately selling the underlying stock at the price shown when an order is filed. The prospectus warns that compliance reviews, settlement procedures, and market transactions can delay payment, while the price received after a sale may differ from the value available when the holder submitted the order.

Users who acquire tokens through unregulated DeFi markets may remain “unvested” until they satisfy the issuer’s compliance requirements. According to the filing, unvested holders cannot redeem their tokens, receive the underlying shares, or submit voting instructions.

U.S. investors cannot access the Base stock tokens

Despite representing shares of U.S.-listed companies, Coinbase Tokenized Stocks on Base are not available to U.S. persons. The securities have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933 or with any U.S. state securities regulator.

Coinbase offers the products under Regulation S, an SEC registration exemption covering certain securities transactions conducted outside the United States. The prospectus prohibits offering, selling, or delivering the tokens within the country or for the account or benefit of a U.S. person.

American customers can separately use Coinbase’s regulated brokerage service for conventional stocks and exchange-traded funds. Coinbase Capital Markets offers those securities through a FINRA-member broker, with execution, clearing, and custody handled by Apex Clearing, but the arrangement is separate from the B20 products available on Base.

Competition outside the U.S. has continued to grow. An August tokenized-market comparison placed the total value tracked by Token Terminal near $2.7 billion, with Ondo Finance leading issuers while Binance bStocks and xStocks each held more than $600 million.

A separate July volume analysis found that tokenized stock trading had risen 288% during the month, although a tokenized QQQ product accounted for most decentralized secondary-market activity.

Coinbase’s prospectus warns that holders may lose their entire investment and that token prices can diverge from the underlying shares because of liquidity, market closures or disruptions. It also states that SIPC rules do not directly address the custody structure, leaving uncertainty over whether protection in an Alpaca insolvency would apply separately to each holder or only at the issuer level.

Users on X suspect that a recorded interaction between representatives of GTA VI publisher, Rockstar Games, and a pseudonymous X user was staged to pump a crypto scam amid the game’s ongoing leak scandal.

The clip appears to show the representatives knocking on the door of X user “@LewisBi94895348” who, via Reddit account “Pilotx1970,” appeared to predict major GTA VI leaks.

Last month, they posted “August 18 — don’t ask me how I know,” along with, “If you don’t believe me, come back on that date and we will see.” 

They also claimed to know the identity of “CyberLeek,” the main X account that’s been leaking footage of GTA VI gameplay since August 18.

In footage posted by the Lewis X account today, one of the alleged Rockstar reps can be heard saying, “They’re not happy with it,” before asking, “Do you know certain individuals under certain handles, and who are the associates?” 

Read more: Bitcoin spikes after GTA VI trailer leak says ‘Buy $BTC’

They later express doubt that his August 18 post was pure chance. 

User’s doubt legitimacy of GTA VI investigation

The Lewis account also promoted their “GTA insider” cryptocurrency across several posts before deleting them. 

Shortly after, users discovered that the account holder has previously been accused of scamming RC plane buyers on Facebook Marketplace, fueling speculation that the video might also be fake.  

One user said there’s no subpoena for [Rockstar Games parent company] Take-Two to pursue Reddit before claiming that the video uploader is just “trying to get a piece of the pie.”

Others suggested that he hired some random people in order to get “millions of views on Twitter.”

Read more: Steam Workshop wallpapers found spreading crypto malware

Who is CyberLeek?

CyberLeek claims to be using his cryptocurrency $CYBERLEEK to raise funds for a “secret project” while advocating for better consumer rights across the video game industry. 

However, gaming advocacy group Stop Killing Games has criticised the leaks, claiming the illegality of it “risks tarnishing the reputation of our communities and our chances to make change.” 

Bringing back the dire wolf

Circle is catching the attention of Wall Street analysts again, with Bernstein arguing that USDC is entering a fresh growth phase that could lift the company’s performance over the next year. In a research note published Monday, the firm said USDC is showing signs of what it called “digital dollar reflation,” after supply jumped by roughly $2 billion in seven days—an apparent turnaround from a six-month period of stagnant or declining growth.

Bernstein maintained an Outperform rating on Circle and set a $140 price target, implying around 60% upside from current levels. The stock has reportedly risen about 40% over the past month, underscoring how quickly market sentiment can shift around stablecoin issuance and adoption.

Key takeaways

• Bernstein cited USDC supply increasing by roughly $2 billion in seven days, reversing a prior stretch of flat or falling growth.
• The firm expects a potential “next phase” for stablecoins to be driven by market momentum, U.S. regulatory clarity, and tokenized capital markets.
• Bernstein said USDC’s share of adjusted stablecoin transaction volume rose from about 40% in 2025 to more than 60% so far in 2026, overtaking USDt by that measure.
• Analysts highlighted early signals of stablecoin payments being used by artificial intelligence agents.

Why Bernstein thinks USDC momentum matters

Stablecoin growth is often measured in multiple ways—issuance, liquidity, and real-world transaction usage. Bernstein’s central argument focuses on issuance acceleration: a $2 billion increase in USDC supply over just one week suggests demand for dollar-denominated on-chain settlement is picking up again. The note frames this as “digital dollar reflation,” implying that the on-chain dollar supply is expanding in a way that may support broader ecosystem activity.

For investors, the implication is straightforward: renewed stablecoin issuance can translate into more business for Circle, particularly if new supply is associated with greater on-chain usage and related enterprise adoption. Bernstein also points to a broader set of catalysts beyond one-week supply growth—elements that, if they materialize, could help make the rebound more durable rather than episodic.

Drivers: regulation, tokenized markets, and payments

Bernstein outlined several potential contributors to a stablecoin “growth cycle.” First, it pointed to renewed momentum in crypto markets, which can raise risk appetite and increase the volume of on-chain activity where stablecoins serve as settlement rails. Second, it highlighted the possibility of greater regulatory clarity in the United States—an area that has long been a variable for stablecoin issuers, exchanges, and payment integrators trying to scale compliant services.

Third, Bernstein linked stablecoin expansion to tokenized capital markets—an umbrella term for the use of tokenized instruments and on-chain infrastructure for financial services. If more of these workflows use stablecoins as a unit of account or settlement asset, transaction volume could increase meaningfully. Finally, Bernstein pointed to growing stablecoin adoption for payments, suggesting that stablecoins are moving beyond trading and into everyday transfer use cases.

The analysts also referenced “early signs” of stablecoin use in payments made by artificial intelligence agents. While still emerging, the idea matters because AI-driven workflows could introduce new automation patterns for transfers—potentially increasing the frequency and diversity of stablecoin payment demand over time.

USDC’s transaction share rises while USDt slips in that metric

Although USDC is still the second-largest dollar-backed stablecoin by market capitalization—behind Tether’s USDt—Bernstein argued that USDC is gaining ground in actual transaction activity. According to the firm, USDC’s share of adjusted stablecoin transaction volume rose from roughly 40% in 2025 to more than 60% so far in 2026. On that basis, USDC has reportedly overtaken USDt.

This distinction is important because it separates “size” from “usage.” A stablecoin can lag in total market cap yet still lead in transaction throughput if it becomes the preferred settlement asset for certain applications or platforms. For Circle, a rise in transaction share can signal improvements in distribution, integrations, and user behavior—even if headline supply growth is the first datapoint drawing attention.

Circle stock performance and fundamentals since IPO

Bernstein’s bullish view arrives during a period of noticeable stock volatility for Circle. The company went public in June 2025, pricing its shares at $31 and raising about $1.1 billion in its initial public offering. After a strong early period, the shares slid back toward their IPO level by November 2025 as broader crypto market weakness weighed on publicly traded companies exposed to the sector.

Despite that volatility, Circle has continued to report improving results on an annual comparison basis. In its most recent quarter, the company reported $701 million in revenue and $48 million in net income, both up from a year earlier. The persistence of year-over-year improvement can matter for how equity markets interpret a stablecoin growth rebound—especially when traders are trying to balance short-term issuance trends against longer-term profitability.

As stablecoin demand patterns evolve, investors may focus not only on supply but also on which networks and use cases drive transaction volume. Bernstein’s emphasis on USDC overtaking USDt on adjusted transaction share suggests that, at least for now, usage dynamics are shifting in Circle’s favor.

What to watch next is whether the “digital dollar reflation” signals translate into sustained growth beyond a one-week supply jump—particularly as policy clarity and payment and tokenization adoption progress. If USDC continues to lead transaction share while issuance remains steady, Bernstein’s thesis could gain more traction; if not, the current rebound may prove temporary.