PANews reported on April 18 that according to The Block, Coinbase International's perpetual futures platform continued to grow in the derivatives market, processing nearly $100 billion in Bitcoin perpetual futures trading volume in the past week. This surge has made Bitcoin perpetual futures the exchange's largest market segment, with all other markets seeing significantly lower trading volumes.
The recent surge in trading activity coincides with market turmoil sparked by tariff uncertainty, which initially caused the S&P 500 to plunge 20% before quickly rebounding. Bitcoin has shown relative resilience during this period of heightened volatility, reinforcing its narrative as “digital gold” and a potential safe haven asset during times of economic uncertainty. Traditional gold’s performance over the same period appears to validate this view, with prices surging to a record high above $3,200, indicating a broader rush to assets seen as a store of value.