Goldman Sachs, the Wall Street bank, indicated it is “selectively constructive” regarding brokers and cryptocurrency firms as it approaches 2026. The firm believes a resilient retail trading landscape and ongoing regulatory advancements will support growth.
“We anticipate that the fusion of traditional retail brokerage and cryptocurrency trading will persist into 2026, fostering heightened competition that could influence market share and product pricing,” analysts led by James Yaro commented in a report released on Monday.
The bank upgraded the rating for crypto exchange Coinbase (COIN) from neutral to buy and increased its price target from $294 to $303, suggesting a potential upside of over 30%. Shares surged 4.3% in early Monday trading following a rally in cryptocurrency prices on Sunday night.
Conversely, the bank downgraded eToro (ETOR) from buy to neutral and reduced its price target from $48 to $39. The stock declined 1.2% to $35.27 in premarket trading.
Yaro and his team maintained buy ratings on Robinhood (HOOD), Interactive Brokers (IBKR), and Figure Technology (FIGR).
According to Yaro, Coinbase’s scale and brand recognition are crucial factors driving superior revenue growth and gaining market share compared to its peers. He predicted a 12% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for COIN’s revenue until 2027, as opposed to 8% for its competitors, bolstered by exceptional customer acquisition costs.
The analysts also pointed out recent product introductions across various sectors, including brokerage, banking, wealth management, and tokenization, stating that these offerings enhance the company’s competitiveness and position it to capitalize on emerging sectors like prediction markets.
Meanwhile, the bank holds a positive outlook on Coinbase’s expanding subscription and services segment, which now contributes approximately 40% of its revenue. It expects this portion to grow steadily, alleviating earnings volatility as use cases for cryptocurrency diversify beyond trading.
“Despite its promising growth, competition is becoming fiercer in its primary market and offerings, which may result in higher customer acquisition costs and pricing pressures, affecting planned U.S. expansion,” the analysts stated regarding eToro in their downgrade.
Read more: Citi remains optimistic about crypto stocks even as Bitcoin faces challenges near year-end
