Goldman Sachs Backs COIN, HOOD With $86.5M XRP ETF Bet

Goldman Sachs has turned cautiously optimistic on crypto for the second half of 2026, despite trading volumes falling 30% in July and another 21% in August. The bank increased its crypto ETF holdings and issued buy ratings on Coinbase and Robinhood, pointing to regulatory progress and expanding product lines as reasons the sector’s downturn may be nearing its floor.

Volumes Slide, But Goldman Sees a Floor Forming

The bank’s research shows crypto trading volumes have dropped roughly 75% from their peak, marking a longer decline than the previous five market cycles. Even so, crypto market capitalization rebounded about 21% to $2.8 trillion over the past week, and Goldman’s analysts noted volumes could recover if that market cap holds near current levels.

Regulatory uncertainty remains the dominant concern among institutions: 35% of investors surveyed cited it as the top barrier to adoption, while 32% pointed to regulatory clarity as the primary catalyst that could unlock further growth. Goldman highlighted several developments working in the sector’s favor, including SEC innovation exemptions, crypto firms securing OCC national bank charters, and crypto infrastructure expanding into traditional finance. The SEC has continued advancing its own crypto framework even as the CLARITY Act remains stalled in Congress. Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon has publicly backed the act despite pushback from banks over stablecoin yield provisions.

Coinbase and Robinhood Get Buy Ratings

Goldman’s crypto stock picks reflect its broader thesis: with firms like Coinbase and Robinhood expanding into tokenized stocks, prediction markets and perpetual futures trading, the bank expects revenue growth to follow as September and October seasonality historically favor crypto markets. The bank has been reiterating Buy ratings on both names through 2026, framing them as the clearest ways to capture a crypto recovery even as trading volumes stay depressed.

Recent market moves support that framing:

• Coinbase (COIN) rallied over 21% in a week, trading in the mid-$180s to $190s range as of late August, with Wall Street’s consensus target sitting between $195 and $218
• Robinhood (HOOD) gained 12% over the same stretch, with Goldman lifting its price target to $123 in a recent update, tracking a Street-wide Overweight consensus near $124.73

Goldman also rebuilt its XRP ETF exposure after fully exiting the position in the first quarter. Its Q2 2026 SEC filing shows $86.5 million spread across five XRP-linked funds, led by Bitwise at $25.8 million and Franklin Templeton at $25.4 million, making Goldman the largest disclosed institutional holder of XRP ETFs. XRP has gained more than 50% since the bank’s re-entry became public.

Bitcoin, meanwhile, has recovered above $80,000, up 26% over the past week and touching a 24-hour high of $81,160. Trading volume has jumped nearly 75% in the same period as investors position ahead of Wednesday’s U.S. PCE inflation data. Some crypto analysts see a break above $83,000 as the level that would confirm the bear market has ended; Bitcoin is currently testing resistance at its 50-week moving average near $81,100.

Conclusion

Goldman’s stance amounts to selective confidence rather than a full risk-on call: trading volumes remain historically weak, but the bank is betting that regulatory progress, expanding product lines at Coinbase and Robinhood, and renewed institutional appetite for XRP exposure are enough to support a recovery through year-end. Whether that thesis holds likely depends on whether crypto market capitalization can hold its recent gains long enough for volumes to follow.