Coinbase Reports Quarterly Loss of $557 Million as Crypto Winter Continues in Wake of FTX Collapse

Coinbase Global Inc reported a fourth-quarter loss on Tuesday, as trading volume at the cryptocurrency exchange came under pressure from an industry-wide downturn triggered by a string of high-profile bankruptcies.

The digital assets market suffered from dour sentiment over the last year, but the biggest blow to the sector came from the bankruptcy of Sam Bankman-Fried's major crypto exchange FTX in November.

"In the wake of FTX and other crypto company failures, we have seen increased regulatory scrutiny," Chief Executive Brian Armstrong said on a call with analysts but added the development will ultimately benefit Coinbase.

Amid the market downturn, trading volume at the crypto exchange plunged to $145 billion (roughly Rs. 12,00,000 crore) in the fourth quarter, compared with $547 billion (roughly Rs. 45,30,665 crore) a year earlier.

Retail traders also pulled back significantly, with their trading volume in the quarter plummeting nearly 89 percent to $20 billion (roughly Rs. 1,65,655 crore).

One bright spot was subscription and services revenue, which rose about 33 percent to $282.8 million (roughly Rs. 2,335 crore) in the fourth quarter, benefiting from hefty interest rate hikes.

Shares in Coinbase were up marginally in volatile trading after the bell.

The crypto exchange forecast subscription and services revenue in the first quarter between $300 million (roughly Rs. 2,500 crore) and $325 million (roughty Rs. 2,700 crore), above Wall Street estimates of about $285.7 million (roughly Rs. 2,360 crore), according to Refinitiv data.

"I think it is a pretty good report with encouraging outlook. We will see how the stock settles," Oppenheimer analyst Owen Lau told Reuters, adding the guidance was supported by expense control and improving revenue trend.

The company reported net revenue of $605 million (roughly Rs. 5,010 crore) in the quarter, compared with $2.49 billion a year earlier.

Coinbase reported a net loss of $557 million (roughly Rs. 4,600 crore) in the three months ended Decemeber 31, compared with a profit of $840 million (roughly Rs. 7,000 crore) a year earlier.

© Thomson Reuters 2023

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