Coinbase’s layer 2 Ethereum network, Base, is changing the technology that powers it, moving away from Optimism’s OP stack, the toolkit it was originally launched on.
In a blog post titled “The Next Chapter for Base,” the team announced plans to take more control over its own code and infrastructure. Instead of relying on multiple external teams for key upgrades and changes, Base will consolidate everything into a Base-managed codebase.
Simply put, Base was built using Optimism’s technology, but now she wants to run more of her own ship. Optimism is a layer 2 blockchain on top of Ethereum that aims to reduce settlement times and transaction costs.
Base launched in 2023 and quickly became one of the most widely used layer 2 Ethereum networks, with $3.85 billion locked in the protocol today. When the network went live, the Optimism and Base teams said Base had the opportunity to earn up to approximately 118 million OP tokens over six years. He doesn’t yet know what that means for this deal.
The OP token is down 4% in the 24 hours following the announcement.
The team said the change does not mean Base is completely cutting ties with Optimism. The company said it will still work with Optimism for support and will remain compatible with OP Stack standards during the transition. For everyday users and developers, nothing should change immediately.
The team said this change is happening because, if it controls its own stack, Base can ship upgrades faster and simplify how the network works behind the scenes, with the goal of doubling its pace of major upgrades to around six per year.
For now, the transition is mainly technical.
“This unification does not mean that Base will be built in isolation. The protocol remains public and openly specified, and alternative implementations are welcome and encouraged,” the team wrote in its blog.
“We are grateful for our three-year partnership with Base and proud to have helped it become one of the most successful Layer 2 deployments in history,” an OP Labs spokesperson told CoinDesk. “Our focus remains on providing enterprise-grade blockchain infrastructure to our ecosystem, and we will continue to serve Base as an OP Enterprise customer as they build their independent infrastructure.”
UPDATE (February 18, 2026, 6:06 p.m. UTC): Adds OP Labs statement + general information about the OP 118M token agreement.
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