In a cryptic move that has set the crypto community abuzz, Coinbase, the United States’ prominent cryptocurrency exchange, has hinted at the forthcoming release of a product named “cbBTC.” This revelation, delivered via an Aug. 13 post on X, has stirred a maelstrom of conjecture, with many suggesting that Coinbase is poised to introduce its very own wrapped Bitcoin token.

The intrigue began with a terse post from the official Coinbase account, which simply stated “cbBTC,” followed by the tantalizing phrase “coming soon” in a subsequent comment. The enigma deepened when, an hour later, Jesse Pollak, the leader of Coinbase’s layer-2 network Base, professed his admiration for Bitcoin (BTC), asserting that Base intends to construct a “massive Bitcoin economy” upon its network.

These veiled references to cbBTC arrive on the heels of a contentious episode involving BitGo, the entity behind Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC), and Justin Sun, the founder of Tron. On Aug. 9, BitGo disclosed plans to transfer control of WBTC to a new joint venture, involving Hong Kong-based investment manager BiT Global and Sun’s Tron ecosystem. This announcement has sparked disquiet within the decentralized finance (DeFi) sphere, with many voicing concerns over Sun’s involvement and calling for the withdrawal of WBTC support from major protocols.

In response, Block Analitica Labs (BA Labs), a firm specializing in crypto risk management, put forth a proposal on MakerDAO’s governance forum on Aug. 10. The proposal recommended the cessation of new WBTC debt positions and the prohibition of fresh borrowing against WBTC collateral, citing Sun’s influence as a significant risk factor.

Despite the uproar, BitGo CEO Matt Belshe dismissed the security concerns, attributing the controversy to a reaction to “the Justin Sun name” rather than any substantive threat to the WBTC security framework. Belshe assured that the fundamental security protocols governing WBTC remain intact, unchanged by Sun’s involvement.

Sun, in an Aug. 11 post on X, sought to quell the controversy, asserting that there had been “no changes to WBTC” and clarifying that his participation in the venture does not entail direct access to funds.