Coinbase loses half its value as crypto falls

Cryptocurrency trading platform Coinbase has lost half its value in the past week, including its biggest one-day drop to date. Coinbase reported a $430 million net loss in the first quarter, or $1.98 per share, on declining sales and active users.

Revenue was down as trading volumes fell, and active monthly users declined 19% from the fourth quarter. Coinbase said it believed that current market conditions were not permanent and it remained focused on the long-term while prioritizing product development.

Shares of Coinbase Global Inc. declined 43% in the four days leading up to their earnings. On Wednesday, shares fell 26%, to $53.72 per share. On the day of its initial public offering just 13 months ago, prices hit $429 per share.

Analyst Patrick O’Shaughnessy, who covers Coinbase for Raymond James, said in a note: “While management strongly believes the former will prove to be true, we suspect there is more than a bit of truth to the latter, particularly with crypto failing to serve as an inflation hedge thus far in 2022.”