Coinbase is like Netscape. It's a well designed UI on top of a new network (Bitcoin/web) created using a new protocol (Bitcoin spec/HTTP). It's worth more than Netscape because it holds currency but maybe it should be valued based on financial services, not tech stock growth.
https://twitter.com/chamath/status/1379564928684716034
Like Netscape and unlike, say, Facebook, it doesn't own its own protocol. It's not a platform in the traditional sense.
Now you could argue that Coinbase is like Google which sits directly on the web and therefore doesn't own its own protocol, but Google monetizes its traffic not its deposits or their transactions.
It's also only possible to measure Coinbase market cap based on a metric based on deposits in the currencies it holds, and these are way too volatile relative to the dollar which determines its value on capital markets.
In theory it should be on a capital market valued in the token it holds - but that was the route ICOs went down, and regulation has killed it in the US, at least.
So there's an argument to value Coinbase like Google, but certainly not like Facebook and hopefully not like Netscape. But if they monetize based on deposits held or transacted then they're worth less as there is precedent with banking as they don't own the network or protocol.
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