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Coinbase jumps 22% after S&P 500 inclusion

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Brian Armstrong, chief executive officer of Coinbase Global Inc., speaks during the Messari Mainnet summit in New York, on Thursday, Sept. 21, 2023.

Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Coinbase shares soared more than 20% on Tuesday and headed for their sharpest rally since the day after President Donald Trump’s election victory following the crypto exchange’s inclusion in the S&P 500.

S&P Global said in a release late Monday that Coinbase is replacing Discover Financial Services, which is in the process of being acquired by Capital One Financial. The change will take effect before trading on Monday.

Stocks added to the S&P 500 often rise in value because funds that track the benchmark will add it to their portfolios. For Coinbase, it’s the latest sharp move in what’s been a volatile few months since Trump was elected to return to the White House.

Coinbase shares rocketed 31% on Nov. 6, the day after the election, on optimism that the incoming administration would adopt more crypto-friendly policies following a challenging and litigious four years during President Joe Biden’s term in office.

The company and CEO Brian Armstrong were key financial supporters in the 2024 campaign, backing pro-crypto candidates up and down the ticket. Coinbase was one of the top corporate donors, giving more than $75 million to a PAC called Fairshake and its affiliates. Armstrong personally contributed more than $1.3 million to a mix of candidates.

While the start of the Trump term has been mostly favorable to the crypto industry, through deregulation and an executive order to establish a strategic bitcoin reserve, legislation has thus far stalled. That’s due in part to concerns surrounding Trump’s personal efforts to profit from crypto through a meme coin and other family initiatives.

Coinbase has been on a roller coaster as well, plummeting 26% in February and 20% in March as Trump’s tariff announcements roiled markets and pushed investors out of risk. With Tuesday’s rally, the stock is now up about 2% for the year.

Since going public through a direct listing in 2021, Coinbase has become a bigger part of the U.S. financial system, with bitcoin soaring in value and large institutions gaining regulatory approval to create spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds.

Bitcoin spiked last week, topping $100,000 and nearing its record price reached in January. The crypto currency surpassed $104,000 on Tuesday.

To join the S&P 500, a company must have reported a profit in its latest quarter and have cumulative profit over the four most recent quarters.

Coinbase last week reported net income of $65.6 million, or 24 cents a share, down from $1.18 billion, or $4.40 a share a year earlier, after accounting for the fair value of its crypto investments. Revenue rose 24% to $2.03 billion from $1.64 billion a year ago.

The company last week also announced plans to buy Dubai-based Deribit, a major crypto derivatives exchange for $2.9 billion. The deal, which is the largest in the crypto industry to date, will help Coinbase broaden its footprint outside the U.S.

WATCH: Bitcoin surges past $100,000

Bitcoin surges past $100K: Coinbase's John D’Agostino on the crypto rally

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Trump says ‘extremely hard’ to make a deal with China’s Xi as trade stalemate fuels calls for leaders to talk

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The two countries have blamed each other for violating a trade agreement reached in Switzerland on May 12.

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Retirement account balances dip in Q1 2025 as savings rates hit record high

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Retirement account balances dipped in the first quarter due to stock market turbulence. Still, people kept socking away money for their retirement, according to new data from Fidelity Investments. 

The financial services company analyzed more than 50 million retirement accounts, finding that the average balances of 401(k), IRA and 403(b) accounts all saw small declines during the first three months of 2025. 

The average 401(k) account balance decreased 3% quarter over quarter to $127,100, according to Fidelity Investment’s Q1 2025 retirement analysis.

401

IRA accounts had average balances of $121,983 and 403(b) accounts held $115,424 on average in the first quarter, 4% and 2% lower than the prior quarter, respectively. 

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Fidelity largely attributed those declines to “market swings.” 

The market was turbulent during the first quarter amid uncertainty surrounding tariffs and other policy issues, including popular index funds. 

Still, retirement savings rates “stayed consistently high,” according to Fidelity. 

For 401(k) accounts, employee contribution rates hit 9.5% during the first quarter, with the employer contribution rate coming in at 4.8%, according to its analysis. 

Savings jar

Combined, the 14.3% savings rate for 401(k) accounts marked a “record” and the “closest it’s ever been to Fidelity’s suggested savings rate of 15%,” the company said. 

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Holders of 403(b) accounts, meanwhile, had a rate of 11.8% on average. 

“Although the first quarter of 2025 posed challenges for retirement savers, it’s encouraging to see people take a continuous savings approach which focuses on their long-term retirement goals,” Sharon Brovelli, president of workplace investing at Fidelity, said in a statement. “This approach will help individuals weather any type of market turmoil and stay on track to reach their retirement goals.” 

During the first quarter, which was plagued with market volatility, 17.4% of 401(k) holders upped the size of their contributions, while only 4.9% lowered theirs, the report found. 

401k statement shown on table

Meanwhile, contribution rates among 14.6% of 403(b) holders went up in the first quarter. 

Only a small percentage of people with those types of retirement plans altered their asset allocation during the first quarter, with just 6% of 401(k) users doing so and 4.7% for 403(b), it found. 

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Fidelity’s analysis also showed that people with IRAs upped the amount of money that they put in those retirement accounts in the first quarter by 4.5% compared to 2024’s first quarter. 

separate survey released Monday by Gallup found 59% of U.S. adults have funds put away in a retirement savings account.

Among those with retirement savings plans that have not yet left the workforce, half reported they “expect to have enough to live comfortably in retirement,” according to Gallup. 

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Stocks making the biggest moves after hours: HPE, CRWD, GWRE

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