Coinbase Global Inc. shares rose after the largest US cryptocurrency exchange’s second-quarter loss narrowed and revenue exceeded estimates.
The net loss for the little more than a decade-old-firm narrowed to $97 million, or 42 cents a share, from a record $1.1 billion, or $4.98, a year earlier. Revenue declined 12% to $707.9 million, higher than the $631.2 million consensus estimate of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Quarterly transaction revenue fell to $327.1 million.
Coinbase benefitted from a rebound in cryptocurrency prices in the first half of the year while its chief executive, Brian Armstrong, has became deeper embroiled in a fight with US regulators. The firm was sued Coinbase in June by the Securities and Exchange Commission for allegedly running an illegal exchange, broker and clearing agency. Even so, the shares have more than doubled this year.
Interest income, a key revenue driver, dropped to $201.4 million from the prior quarter after circulation of the USDC stablecoin declined. Meanwhile, blockchain rewards revenue, primarily from staking, which is under pressure after Coinbase was ordered to stop staking additional assets in four US states, rose.
The company in May launched the Coinbase International Exchange, on which some investors based outside the US can trade crypto derivatives. The venue saw $2.1 billion of trading volume in the past 30 days. Global trading in Bitcoin futures alone totaled $550 billion last month, data compiled by the Block show.
