Coinbase Posts Surprise Loss as Crypto Trading Dries Up

Coinbase reported its second-quarter earnings on Thursday, revealing a surprise loss of $359 million. The company's revenue fell short of expectations at $1.22 billion, down 14% from the previous quarter and 19% from last year.

The decline in revenue was attributed to a decrease in crypto spot trading volume, which fell by more than 20% from the prior quarter. Transaction revenue also declined by 21% to $599 million. Despite this, Coinbase's stablecoin revenue reached $292 million, with average USDC held on Coinbase products hitting a record $20 billion.

Coinbase's share of global crypto trading volume hit a record 10.3%, its third straight quarter of market-share gains. The company also noted that 88% of net revenue now comes from sources other than Bitcoin spot trading, up from 45% in 2020.