Coinbase misses earnings estimates as crypto downturn weighs on trading – News

Shares in Coinbase Global Inc. were up slightly in late trading today despite the cryptocurrency exchange provider reporting earnings and revenue below expectations in its fiscal 2025 fourth quarter amid declining transaction numbers due to a significant fall in the price of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

For the quarter that ended Dec. 31, Coinbase reported adjusted earnings of 66 cents per share, down from $3.70 per share in the fourth quarter of 2024, on revenue of $1.781 billion, down 21.6% year-over-year. Analysts had been expecting earnings of $1.05 per share and revenue of $1.85 billion.

Reflecting the slowdown in cryptocurrency trading, Coinbase saw transaction revenue of $983 million, down 6% quarter-over-quarter and subscription and services revenue of $727 million, down 3% quarter-over-quarter. At the same time, Coinbase’s costs increased, with technology and development, general and administrative and sales and marketing expenses collectively increasing 14% quarter-over-quarter to $1.3 billion.

Coinbase saw a net loss in the quarter of $667 million, adjusted net income was $178 million and adjusted earnings came in at $566 million. The company ended the quarter with $11.3 billion in cash and cash equivalents on hand.

Business highlights in the quarter included the rollout of prediction markets and new asset classes as part of Coinbase’s broader push to expand beyond spot cryptocurrency trading.

The company introduced tools designed to support event-based contracts and additional trading categories as part of an effort to diversify transaction revenue streams and position the platform as a multi-asset marketplace rather than a crypto-only exchange.

Coinbase also launched 24/7 perpetual-style futures trading for U.S. customers during the quarter and, in doing so, expanded its derivatives capabilities in the domestic market. The product allows eligible users to gain leveraged exposure to digital assets through contracts that do not expire and align the offering more closely with international crypto derivatives markets that operate continuously.

The quarter also saw Coinbase integrate technology and offerings from Deribit, cryptocurrency derivatives exchange it announced it had entered an agreement to acquire for $2.9 billion in May, following the close of its acquisition. Deribit brings options and advanced derivatives infrastructure under the Coinbase umbrella and expands Coinbase’s reach in crypto options trading and institutional derivatives with established liquidity pools, open interest and professional trading workflows.

For its full year, Coinbase reported adjusted earnings per share of $4.44, down from $8.38 in 2024, on revenue of $6.883 billion, up 9.4% year-over-year.

“In 2025, we drove all-time highs across our products: Coinbase One subscriptions reached ~1 million, trading volume and market share doubled and USDC held on platform reached an all-time high,” said Brian Armstrong, co-founder and chief executive officer of Coinbase. “We’re in pole position to capitalize on whatever 2026 has in store.”

For its first quarter, Coinbase expects subscription and services revenue of $550 million to $630 million.

The surprise uptick in Coinbase’s stock, despite declining demand for its services, reflects that the company had already revised its outlook and while today’s results may be below forecasts, they were perhaps not as bad as they could have been, as the market had already factored in a reasonably poor result.

Photo: Coinbase