Being already used for bridging, the Base mainnet is to open for everyone and all use cases on August 9

The crypto exchange Coinbase announced that Base, its Ethereum layer-2 blockchain built with the help of Optimism’s OP Stack, would launch to the general public on Aug. 9.

Previously, the Base mainnet was introduced to developers, with bridging function available since Aug. 3. Moreover, the option to fund wallets with ether was launched even earlier.

On-chain data shows that over $120 million worth of ETH was bridged to the network before it even went public. The total value of bridged assets exceeds $140 million. That includes over $13 million of USDC and almost $6 million in various altcoins.

To celebrate the L2 blockchain launch, the company will conduct Onchain Summer, a month-long onchain festival, bringing users fun onchain activities, highlighting art, music, gaming, advocacy, and more.

Despite the blockchain launch, Coinbase doesn’t plan to issue a separate network token.

The new L2 network was first announced in February. It positions itself as a low-cost, secure, developer-friendly blockchain environment for building decentralized apps (dApps).

Besides the ability to develop dApps for Ethereum, Base will be interoperable with other L2 chains, while also offering access to various L1 ecosystems like Solana. The network will also provide access to Coinbase’s products, users, fiat on-ramps and acquisition tools.

The ambitious goal of Base is to make on-chain the next online and onboard one billion users into the crypto-economy.