Coinbase First Quarter Earnings Top $1 Billion

Ahead of its planned direct listing on the Nasdaq next week, Coinbase first-quarter revenue climbed about nine-fold from last year, the cryptocurrency exchange reported late Tuesday. 

Coinbase reported an estimated $1.8 billion in total revenue for the first-quarter of 2021. In 2020, Coinbase reported $1.1 billion in total revenue, a 136% increase from $483 million in 2019. 

The exchange also reported an estimated trading volume of $335 billion, up from $85 billion in the fourth quarter of 2020, and a net income of “approximately $730 million to $800 million.” Coinbase also reported 56 million verified users during the first quarter. 

“Many traditional investors still treat crypto as a sideshow,” said Matt Hougan, Chief Investment Officer at Bitwise Asset Management. “Coinbase’s IPO, and particularly its earnings report, are going to wake people up to the reality that crypto is one of the fastest-growing areas of the American economy.” 

The company also holds $223 billion in assets on the platform, representing 11.3% of crypto asset market share with some $122 billion coming from institutions. 

Coinbase is poised to debut on the Nasdaq under the ticker COIN on April 14. Trading on the private market has valued the exchange at $68 billion. The listing has many bracing for even greater investor interest in digital assets. 

“Coinbase’s IPO is a singular moment in the timeline of crypto’s evolution. We’re going to talk about a pre-Coinbase-IPO era and a post-Coinbase-IPO era,” said Hougan. “I’m so excited for what the post-Coinbase IPO era will bring.”

To prepare for IPO, Coinbase recently made significant hires, including Ian Rooney who will lead its enterprise compliance team, former SEC official Brett Redfearn, now vice president of capital markets, and Molly Abraham as an associate general counsel for commercial.

Tanaya Macheel contributed reporting.