Coinbase reports $708M in quarterly revenue but overall net loss ahead of Base launch

Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase published its Q2 earnings report on Aug. 3 and reported significant revenue despite overall losses.

Coinbase said it saw $708 million in total revenue, marking a decline of 8% quarter-over-quarter (Q/Q), and $663 million in net revenue, marking a decline of 10% Q/Q. The company also saw $97 million in net loss and $194 million in adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA).

Underwhelming performance

Coinbase reported $327 million in transaction revenue in Q2, down 13% Q/Q. This revenue was split between two categories. Coinbase saw $310 million of consumer transaction revenue from $14 billion in consumer trading volume, down 12% and 33% Q/Q, respectively. It saw $17 million of institutional transaction revenue from $78 billion in institutional trading volume, down 24% and 37% Q/Q, respectively.

The company said that lower volumes primarily drove declining revenue but was partially mitigated by higher realized fees due to changes in trading activity.

Coinbase noted that its revenue decline outperformed the crypto spot market, which saw a 48% Q/Q decline, and said it gained market share there.

The company also strengthened its balance sheet by reaching $5.5 billion in USD resources, a Q/Q increase of $156 million. That category includes cash, cash equivalents, the USDC stablecoin, and custodial account overfunding.

Coinbase’s underwhelming but not overly negative earnings report has caused the price of its COIN stock to remain largely unchanged. Though Bloomberg reported sudden earlier gains, COIN is up 0.35% on Aug. 3 and down 0.83% after hours.

Going forward, Coinbase said that it expects its Q3 revenue to be “largely consistent” with its Q2 outlook. It said subscription and services revenue could reach at least $300 million. The company said that an absence of changes concerning the crypto market cap and its on-platform assets allows for this consistent outlook. It added that its withdrawal of staking services in certain states should have no material impact on revenue.

Coinbase also drew attention to the upcoming public launch of its Layer 2 network, Base. The company said that the launch will take place on Aug. 9, allowing for faster, more secure, and less expensive transactions. The company said it had received an “overwhelming response” from developers in many different areas.

An announcement states that over 50 brands, including Coca-Cola, Atari, and the NFT marketplace OpenSea, will celebrate Base’s launch with NFT mints and more.