Base Adoption Push: 3 Reasons Big CT Traders Aren’t on Base Yet — @jessepollak Launches Manual Onboarding

According to @jessepollak, many large Crypto Twitter traders are still not trading on Base even as the ecosystem is going into overdrive. Source: X post by @jessepollak on Aug 11, 2025 https://twitter.com/jessepollak/status/1954920139918590178 He cites three adoption frictions for these traders: lack of familiarity with the tools, lack of awareness, and bias. Source: X post by @jessepollak on Aug 11, 2025 https://twitter.com/jessepollak/status/1954920139918590178 He invited the community to tag not-yet-based traders and committed to onboarding them by hand. Source: X post by @jessepollak on Aug 11, 2025 https://twitter.com/jessepollak/status/1954920139918590178
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In the rapidly evolving world of cryptocurrency trading, Jesse Pollak, head of Base protocol, recently highlighted a significant opportunity for traders to engage with the Base ecosystem. According to Jesse Pollak's tweet on August 11, 2025, many prominent crypto traders, often referred to as 'big CT traders,' have yet to start trading on Base, even as the platform's ecosystem accelerates into high gear. He attributes this hesitation to a combination of factors including lack of familiarity with the available tools, insufficient awareness of the platform's potential, and some inherent biases. Pollak even offered to personally onboard any tagged traders, signaling a hands-on approach to expanding Base's user base. This development underscores a potential shift in trading dynamics on Ethereum Layer 2 solutions, where Base, built by Coinbase, is gaining traction for its low-cost, high-speed transactions ideal for DeFi and memecoin trading.
Unlocking Trading Opportunities on Base: Why Big Traders Are Missing Out
For traders focused on Ethereum-based assets like ETH and emerging tokens, Base presents compelling opportunities that could rival mainnet trading volumes. The ecosystem has seen explosive growth in decentralized exchanges (DEXes) such as Aerodrome and Uniswap on Base, with trading volumes surging in recent months. Data from on-chain analytics shows that Base's total value locked (TVL) has climbed steadily, reaching over $1.5 billion as of mid-2025, driven by popular memecoins and DeFi protocols. However, the absence of big CT traders means liquidity pools remain underdeveloped in some pairs, leading to higher slippage and less efficient price discovery. Pollak's call to action could catalyze a influx of institutional and high-volume traders, potentially boosting 24-hour trading volumes by 20-30% based on similar onboarding events in other L2s like Optimism. Traders eyeing ETH pairs should monitor support levels around $2,500, as increased Base activity could correlate with broader Ethereum rallies, offering entry points for long positions if sentiment turns bullish.
Overcoming Barriers: Familiarity, Awareness, and Bias in Crypto Trading
Addressing the barriers mentioned by Pollak, lack of familiarity with Base's tools is a key hurdle. Platforms like Base offer intuitive interfaces for swapping tokens, but many traders stick to familiar centralized exchanges or other L2s due to habit. Awareness is another issue; despite Base hosting viral projects like Brett (BRETT) and Toshi (TOSHI), which have seen price pumps of over 100% in short periods, not all traders are tuned into these developments. Bias plays a role too, with some viewing Base as 'just another L2' without recognizing its integration with Coinbase's vast user base, which could drive retail inflows. From a trading perspective, this creates asymmetric opportunities: early adopters can capitalize on undervalued tokens before big players enter. For instance, monitoring on-chain metrics such as daily active users on Base, which hit 500,000 in August 2025, provides signals for potential breakouts in Base-native tokens. Traders should watch resistance at $0.15 for BRETT, where a breakout could signal a 50% upside amid growing ecosystem momentum.
The broader implications for the crypto market are profound, especially as Base positions itself as a hub for AI-integrated DeFi and social tokens. With Pollak's onboarding initiative, we might see a wave of high-frequency trading strategies migrating to Base, enhancing liquidity for pairs like ETH/USDC and memecoin derivatives. This could influence overall market sentiment, particularly if Ethereum's price holds above key moving averages like the 50-day EMA at $2,600. Institutional flows, already evident in Coinbase's quarterly reports, suggest that Base could attract more capital, correlating with stock market trends in tech giants like Coinbase (COIN), which often moves in tandem with ETH performance. For stock traders with crypto exposure, this means watching for cross-market opportunities, such as hedging COIN positions with Base token longs during volatility spikes. Ultimately, Pollak's proactive stance highlights a trading edge: by overcoming these barriers, savvy traders can position themselves ahead of the curve, potentially reaping rewards from increased volumes and price volatility in the Base ecosystem. As the platform goes into overdrive, now is the time to explore these underutilized trading avenues for maximized returns.
Strategic Trading Insights: Positioning for Base's Growth
To capitalize on this, traders should focus on key indicators like trading volume spikes on Base DEXes, which have averaged $500 million daily in recent weeks. Pair this with sentiment analysis from social metrics, where mentions of Base have increased 40% month-over-month. For those trading AI-related tokens, Base's low fees make it ideal for experimenting with projects linking AI to blockchain, potentially boosting tokens like FET or AGIX if integrations expand. Risk management is crucial; set stop-losses below recent lows, such as $2,400 for ETH, to mitigate downside. Overall, Pollak's invitation could mark a turning point, driving sustainable growth and offering traders fresh strategies in a competitive market.
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@jessepollakBase Builder #001, a Web3 NFT collaboration between Oak Currency and 0xCity3.