The number of daily active users on Coinbase’s layer 2 blockchain has surpassed 100,000 for the first time, just one day after the network’s formal launch. Base was officially launched after a few weeks in an “open for builders only” phase. According to an announcement made by the team on August 9, the network is now ready to accept users.
Several Web3 development teams announced that they would be releasing apps for Base at the same time, and the network’s team has set a schedule of future activities to commemorate the network’s launch.
What is the base network, and how can it be used?
Base was initially released as a beta version on February 23. As soon as it was announced, many in the crypto community speculated that Coinbase’s large user base could aid in onboarding more users into Web3 protocols.
The mainnet version of the network was released “for builders” on July 13, but the team warned that it was not yet available for users. The network became accessible to all users on August 9. Here are a few tasks that users can do on Base at present.
1. Bridge Tokens
Using the official Base bridge, which debuted an interface on August 3, users can bridge Ether from the mainnet to Base. Wormhole, a protocol for cross-chain bridging, announced its availability on Base on August 9.
2. Swap tokens and provide liquidity
At least two decentralized crypto exchanges (DEXs) have announced support for Base, and a third may shortly relaunch. Uniswap, one of the first decentralized exchanges on Ethereum, announced on August 7 that its Base version was operational.
On August 8, Maverick Protocol released its Base version. Maverick asserts that it offers greater capital efficiency and customization than its competitors.
LeetSwap, the third DEX on Base, was previously operational during the “builders only” phase but has since been disabled due to an exploit discovered on August 1. The team intends to restart the endeavor in the near future. LeetSwap asserts that it is a DEX for “leet degens” and provides “dual-token farm rewards” to maximize yield.
These three applications give users the option to exchange tokens or become liquidity providers.
3. Make Payments
At least one payment app is available for Base. Beam is a web-based app that enables users to pay with either U.S. Dollar Coin or Eco, the app’s native crypto. According to the app’s developers, neither seed words nor Ether are required to pay for gas fees.
They can pay for gas using USDC or Eco by logging in with their Twitter accounts. The application also incorporates a fiat-to-crypto and crypto-to-fiat gateway.
4. Register a username
The soulbound token protocol for Base has been released by Masa Finance. On August 8, the protocol announced that “.base” Masa identities can now be registered on the new network. These identifiers can be used for credit underwriting and other Know Your Customer-compliant services in the future.
Masa stated in its announcement that since the builder phase began, more than 280,000 identities have been created on Base.
5. Launch a Dao
Aragon, a protocol for creating decentralized autonomous organizations, has released its “no-code Aragon app” and “modular Aragon OSx” on Base to facilitate the creation of DAOs on the new network. Although developers will primarily use this function, end users can also create DAOs on Base via Aragon.
Coinbase layer-2 network Base growth becomes noticeable
Dune Analytics data from August 10 reveal over 136,000 daily users, the largest number in the company’s short history, which also happens to be the second day of its public release.
On August 10, around 30% of daily users were new Base members, totaling nearly 42,000 — however, the record stands at over 60,000 on July 31.
Meanwhile, CryptoRank announced in an Aug. 10 X post that Base currently ranks fourth in daily transactions per second among layer 2 solutions, below zkSync Era, Arbitrum, and Optimism.
On top of the Base Network, Coinbase has made strides in the financial system. Coinbase Ventures, the investment arm of the largest publicly traded U.S. crypto exchange, expanded its relationship with RocketPool by announcing the purchase of RPL, the native token of the liquid staking network.
RPL, which provides direct incentives, insurance, and governance for the Rocket Pool ecosystem, has increased by more than 9% to $28.82 over the past 24 hours.
Coinbase Ventures joined Rocket Pool’s Oracle DAO, a group of special node administrators with additional responsibilities for the liquid staking network, several months prior to the announcement.
While Coinbase Ventures did not disclose the amount of RPL it acquired, it stated on X (previously Twitter) that the token purchase was a “strategic investment.”
The investment demonstrates that Coinbase has “some confidence in both Rocket Pool, the protocol, and RPL, the token,” a pseudonymous contributor to the rocket pool community told CoinDesk in a Discord message. Rocket Pool’s brand is valuable, and Coinbase desires a partnership with us.
