Coinbase Adds DEX Trading, Imposes USDC Conversion Fee

Coinbase has integrated decentralized exchange (DEX) trading directly into its main app for most U.S. users except those in New York, enabling access to a broader range of Base-native and on-chain tokens using DEX aggregators such as 0x and 1inch. To encourage adoption, Coinbase is temporarily covering network fees for DEX trades to help users unfamiliar with gas costs. The company aims to become an 'everything exchange' and plans to expand DEX functionality globally and to additional networks like Solana. Concurrently, Coinbase announced a 0.1% fee on USDC-to-USD conversions exceeding $5 million within any 30-day period, which has sparked criticism and renewed concerns about centralization and bank-like practices. Coinbase describes the new fee as experimental and intends to monitor its impact, while recent user complaints about account freezes have heightened scrutiny of the platform. These changes reflect Coinbase's ongoing push to expand services and remain competitive as market dynamics shift.