Coinbase says $2.9 billion Deribit deal will increase profits even as income drops in Q1

Coinbase just pulled off the biggest acquisition of a crypto firm in industry history. On Thursday, the U.S.’s largest crypto exchange announced that it would pay $2.9 billion for Deribit, a derivatives platform that lets traders bet on the future prices of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.

Executives predicted that the acquisition was going to be a boon for Coinbase’s bottom line as the company continues to diversify its revenue. “It's been consistently profitable,” Emilie Choi, the exchange’s COO...