A coin that's purportedly linked to a network created by Coinbase has emerged on a platform used to buy and sell allocations before they're launched.
Accompanying information published on the platform links to an official company website and X page, though the coin doesn't seem to be legitimately associated with Base or Coinbase.
The apparent newcomer 'Base' had a total volume of $41.70 at 16:05UTC, with four buy activities registered in the past three hours. It's trading on an OTC platform known as Whales Market, which allows for the buying and selling of pre-launched tokens. The coin "potentially called $BASE, is designed to support Base’s network by enabling decentralization, governance, staking and incentives for builders and creators, fostering a stronger on-chain economy," according to the platform, which provided no further information regarding the token.
Responding to questions from Sandmark, a spokesperson for Base said, "we are still exploring a Base token," suggesting that the initiative is incomplete.
Base is a Layer-2 platform created by crypto exchange operator Coinbase for building on top of the Ethereum blockchain. Executives attending a company retreat in September 2025 said they were exploring the possibility of issuing a network token and the company has continued to tease its eventual launch.
Online prediction market Polymarket has an option to bet on whether Coinbase will launch a token for its Base initiative by a specific date. At 15:45UTC, 4% were wagering on a release by 30 Jun, and 43% by the end of the year.
The event should not be confused with the token Base Protocol (BASE) that was established years ago.
