Xen Baynham-Herd on Building Base: From Experimental L2s to Real On-chain Adoption
Xen Baynham-Herd, Head of Global Growth at Base at Coinbase, sees on-chain infrastructure not as a niche experiment but as the foundation of the next internet.
Speaking about Base, Coinbase’s Layer-2 network, Baynham-Herd explains what success really means for Base, how the builder environment is maturing, and why user experience—not grants or hype—will determine who wins.
What Success for Base Looks Like—and What Failure Would Mean
In an interview with CryptoNews, Baynham-Herd describes Base as a key piece in unlocking an on-chain future for the internet. In three to five years, success would mean that using on-chain applications feels as natural as using any app on a smartphone.
Users shouldn’t have to think about blockchain mechanics—they should simply experience speed, safety, and familiarity, while remaining fully in control of their digital lives.
Failure, by contrast, would be an inability to make on-chain experiences intuitive and democratic. If decentralised infrastructure cannot feel open, trustworthy, and seamless at scale, it risks remaining a niche rather than becoming the default digital layer of the internet.
Where Base Refuses to Compete in the L2 Arms Race
While many Layer-2 networks compete aggressively on fees and raw throughput, Baynham-Herd says Base’s differentiation lies elsewhere. Base already offers sub-second speeds and sub-cent fees, but performance alone is not the end goal.
Instead, Base prioritises user experience, distribution, and deep product integration. Its long-term success will be measured by trust, convenience, and scale—factors that matter far more to mainstream users than marginal fee reductions.
The Biggest Mistake Builders Make on Base
According to Baynham-Herd, the most common mistake founders make is failing to obsess over user experience. The strongest teams focus relentlessly on building products that attract and retain new users—not just crypto natives, but people entering the ecosystem for the first time.
He advises founders to ignore short-term noise and focus on creating applications that genuinely delight users. Sustainable growth, he argues, comes from solving real problems, not from chasing trends.
From Experimentation to Durable On-chain Products
Over the past 12 months, Baynham-Herd has seen a shift toward more serious teams committing to long-term development on Base. These builders are no longer just testing ideas—they are designing products meant to endure.
A key change is how teams think about wallets and identity. Wallets are evolving from simple key-management tools into representations of on-chain identity—spaces where participation, creation, and connection coexist. This shift is reshaping how products are designed and how users engage on-chain.
Why Regulation and Adoption Metrics Matter More Than Token Prices
Being closely linked to a regulated company like Coinbase is, in Baynham-Herd’s view, a strategic advantage rather than a limitation. Regulation provides transparency and consumer protection, which serious builders increasingly value as on-chain products reach mainstream audiences.
He also urges observers to look beyond token price movements when assessing adoption. Real traction, he says, is reflected in user growth and app engagement—not in whether a coin is going up or down. Durable on-chain businesses are built by teams whose users show up without incentives, driven by genuine belief in the product and its long-term value.
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