Institutional Investors Can Earn Interest on Tezos Through Coinbase Custody

Previously, institutional investors did not stake their cryptocurrency or participate in governance because of the need to use crypto-custodians.

Coinbase Custody is changing that with support for Tezos staking and MakerDAO governance for its institutional clients.

On Mar. 29th, Coinbase announced support for Tezos baking, the protocol's equivalent to proof-of-stake staking.

The new staking features from will allow Coinbase Custody's institutional clients to earn "Passive income," or interest, on their Tezos while enjoying the security of the service.

Now, institutional clients are able to earn staking rewards with their Tezos.

"The launch of Tezos staking through Coinbase Custody serves an acute need that existed up until now: a way for institutional participants who rely on a secure, offline custodian to take an active role in the network."

According to the release, Coinbase will run its own nodes and validators for staking.

Those using the custody services will not be able to opt-out of staking, with Coinbase stating the services are "Non-discretionary" for its clients.

In addition to staking support, Coinbase is adding Maker and Tezos governance options in the second quarter of 2019.

Like staking, institutional investors previously did not have access to voting privileges if they used a custodian.