Coinbase Pro Shuts Down Soon. Here’s What to Know

The Coinbase Pro cryptocurrency trading platform is in the process of shutting down for good. If you're still using Coinbase Pro, your funds will automatically move to Coinbase's main platform unless you carry out the transition yourself.

The shutdown comes after Coinbase added aspects of Coinbase Pro — including its lower, volume-based trading fees — into a feature known as "Advanced Trade."

Coinbase said the move is ongoing, and that customers can move their assets through a one-click process on its service.

"Your funds are always safe and secure with Coinbase, and your balance will be available to trade instantly," the company wrote in an email to customers in late 2022.

How to migrate from Coinbase Pro

If you're a Coinbase Pro customer who wants to continue using Coinbase services after the transition, the process for moving your funds is relatively simple. When you open Coinbase Pro, you should see a banner at the top of the screen. Select the option that says "transfer funds."

If you're in the middle of trading, you can also use your portfolio view to move your funds to Coinbase's main service. Here's how:

1. Select "All portfolios."

2. If you have open orders, you'll get a prompt to cancel them. Coinbase won't transition funds involved in open orders.

3. Set the destination to "Coinbase.com."

4. Hit "withdraw" to confirm.

5. You can use the "withdrawals" tab to view the status of your transfer.

How Coinbase services fit together

Both Coinbase and Coinbase Pro are run by Coinbase, one of the most popular cryptocurrency platforms in the United States. The combined service will remain free to sign up, as both of its predecessors were. The company does have a subscription service called Coinbase One, which offers no-fee trades and other benefits in exchange for a monthly fee of around $30.

The "Advanced Trade" features have been added to the main service to beef up what had been a simpler interface that might appeal to beginners. Though those features remain, you can now use the basic service to toggle to a mode that offers lower fees for some transactions and additional data tools.

If you're selecting an exchange for the first time, it's worth noting that Coinbase has several formidable competitors. (See how Coinbase stacks up among the other crypto exchanges and platforms.)

» Learn more: NerdWallet's review of Coinbase

If you've already decided on Coinbase, here are some details on how Advanced Trade will affect you:

Fees

One advantage that Coinbase Pro has traditionally offered is trading costs that are more predictable and potentially lower than those on the company's basic product. But this will be changing as Coinbase beefs up its core service.

Advanced Trade users pay up to 0.6% per trade, based on a maker-taker model that also provides discounts for high-volume traders. This is similar to the structure previously offered on Coinbase Pro.

Coinbase clients who don't use Pro or Advanced Trade, on the other hand, pay fees that vary based on factors including:

• How you're paying.

• How much you're buying.

• Market conditions, including volatility and liquidity.

Coinbase will inform you of your fees before you finalize your transaction.

Trading and selection

Historically, Coinbase's basic service users have been incentivized to buy and sell cryptocurrencies using fiat currency such as U.S. dollars. While it is possible to trade cryptocurrencies for one another, Coinbase charges a fee to do that on its classic platform.

Coinbase Pro users, on the other hand, have been able to trade digital assets for one another in what is known as crypto-to-crypto pairs without the fees found on the basic service.

Now, as Coinbase rolls out Advanced Trade more broadly, all users will be able to use crypto-to-crypto pairs. There are more than 500 trading pairs available for Advanced Trade, according to Coinbase.

All told, Coinbase has more than 170 cryptocurrencies available.

Staking and rewards

One of the key advantages of Coinbase's core service is that it allows users to earn rewards by holding certain cryptocurrencies on its platform. Coinbase Pro does not offer such a benefit.

One program Coinbase offers involves crypto staking, which is a process by which digital asset owners can earn additional cryptocurrency in exchange for helping to verify transactions on an underlying blockchain network.

While this can be challenging for beginning users to set up from scratch, exchanges such as Coinbase will do it for you, and pay you a portion of their rewards.

» Learn more: Our picks for the best crypto platforms for staking and rewards

Mobile app

For now, Coinbase does have apps on Android and iOS for both its basic service and its Pro offering, but going forward, the main app will host both the basic and advanced services.

Security

Overall, Coinbase says it has taken a handful of steps to secure customers' assets. It says cash held on its platforms is subject to Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. coverage up to $250,000.

And it has said in regulatory filings that it has insurance that would cover a portion of the crypto assets it holds in the event of a breach. Coinbase said about 6,000 customers' holdings were breached in 2021, but it had fully repaid affected users.

Coinbase's basic service and Pro have mostly similar security features, though the company says that Advanced Trade offers some protections that were not available with Pro. These include the ability to use its Coinbase Vault service, which allows users to place additional restrictions on crypto withdrawal.

However, it's important to note that crypto exchanges can be targets for hackers because of the amount of value they store. If you want more control over the security of your digital assets, consider using your own crypto wallet to store the information that allows you to access your holdings.

» Learn more: Best exchanges for storing your crypto