Deribit: The Crypto Options Exchange Coinbase Bought for $2.9 Billion
Deribit is the venue where most of the world's Bitcoin and Ether options trade. Launched in June 2016 by Dutch brothers John and Marius Jansen, it grew from a niche start-up into the reference market for crypto volatility, and on August 14, 2025 Coinbase completed its purchase for about $2.9 billion ($700 million in cash plus 11 million Coinbase Class A shares).
How Deribit started
John Jansen traded options in Amsterdam before discovering Bitcoin around 2012. Crypto had spot and futures markets, but nothing that looked like a professional options exchange. With Marius he built one, naming it Deribit after "derivatives" and "Bitcoin". Volumes took off with the 2017 bull market, Ether options followed, and in 2020 the company moved its operating entity from the Netherlands to Panama.
How Deribit makes money
Deribit earns trading fees. Options cost 0.03% of the underlying per contract, capped at 12.5% of the option price, while futures and perpetuals use maker-taker pricing. Delivery and liquidation fees add to that. Because activity rises when markets swing, Deribit's income tracks crypto volatility. In 2024 it traded $1.185 trillion, up 95% from $608 billion in 2023, with options making up $743 billion.
Dubai licence and leadership
In April 2024 Deribit became the first derivatives exchange to receive VARA approval in Dubai, moved its headquarters there and named chief commercial officer Luuk Strijers as CEO. From January 2025 all activity ran through Deribit FZE, and in 2026 it added a VARA broker-dealer licence so it can route spot orders to Coinbase Exchange.
Deribit inside Coinbase
Coinbase bought Deribit to lead crypto derivatives by open interest and options volume. Deribit had about $60 billion of open interest when the deal closed, and in September 2026 it held roughly 96.6% of the group's derivatives open interest, which is why Coinbase is migrating its international exchange onto Deribit.
Competition
Deribit says it handles about 85% of BTC and ETH options. The main pressure comes from the US: options on BlackRock's IBIT ETF briefly passed Deribit in open interest in April 2026, and CME Group offers regulated Bitcoin and Ether options. Offshore, Binance, OKX and Bybit compete for traders.
