San Francisco – September 19, 2026 -- 2factor.finance has launched on Base to offer leverage for Coinbase's tokenized stocks at roughly 75 percent lower cost than comparable leveraged ETFs, targeting the $112 trillion pool of buy-and-hold capital that has historically been shut out of leveraged positions.
Leveraged ETFs cost investors an estimated $10 billion a year in financing charges
Across roughly $250 billion held in leveraged ETFs, investors pay an estimated $10 billion annually in financing costs above the risk-free rate, according to the company. Only about a third of single-stock leveraged ETFs have outperformed simply holding the underlying stock, and no crypto leveraged ETF has ever beaten spot over its own lifetime.
Single-stock leverage costs 8 to 86 percent a year versus 4 to 5 percent for major indices
2factor attributes the gap to how leveraged ETFs source exposure: banks that supply the leverage hedge it and pass the cost to holders, with pricing set by the dealer's hedging cost rather than competition. The company instead sources leverage from investors seeking stable yield rather than short exposure, which it says cuts the all-in cost of holding a leveraged single-stock position by approximately 75 percent.
2factor applies Kelly-optimal leverage multiples instead of fixed 2x or 3x targets
Rather than applying uniform 2x or 3x multiples, 2factor sets leverage levels calibrated to each asset's volatility -- roughly 1.33x for cbBTC. Over the past decade, one dollar in 3x Bitcoin went to zero, the company said, while one dollar at 1.33x grew to approximately $506, compared with $281 for spot Bitcoin.
Buy-and-hold investors represent $112 trillion versus $15 trillion in short-horizon trading capital
Approximately 88 percent of investable capital, an estimated $112 trillion, is held by buy-and-hold investors, while only about $15 trillion trades on shorter horizons, according to 2factor. The company argues that leverage priced and sized to be held indefinitely expands the addressable capital base for leveraged products by 750 percent compared with instruments designed for traders.
"I want to own moderately leveraged Google for exactly the same reason I want to own moderately leveraged Bitcoin," said Evan Kuo, co-founder of 2factor. "That is not an exotic wish. It is the most ordinary thing an investor can want, and until now there was no way to act on it that survived a bad quarter."
Coinbase CEO says the launch validates the decision to open tokenized equities to developers
Brian Armstrong, co-founder and CEO of Coinbase, said listing tokenized stocks was only the first step, with opening them to composability as developers being the more consequential move. "Putting a stock onchain is only interesting if it lets people do something they could not do before," Armstrong said, adding that 2factor "clears that bar."