Coinbase Sees Worst Quarter Since FTX Collapse
Publicly traded US-based crypto exchange Coinbase saw its worst quarter since the collapse of crypto exchange FTX in 2022. Coinbase shares started 2025 trading at just over $257 on Jan. 2 and ended the quarter at a little over $172 on March 31, a dip of 33%, according to market data. This makes the first quarter of 2025 the worst for Coinbase’s stock performance since the collapse of FTX in November 2022. In Q4 of that year, its share price went from nearly $66 on Oct. 3 to $35.4 on Dec. 30, a loss of 46.4%.
Coinbase has gained a significant foothold in the crypto market. Its prevalence is substantial enough that some industry experts recently told Cointelegraph its emergence as the Ethereum network’s largest node operator raises concerns about network centralization.
Coinbase is expected to release its 2025 financials in early May. The firm’s recent shareholder letters show that the company has generated about $750 million in transaction revenue through Feb. 11 and expects subscription revenue of $685 million to $765 million. While Coinbase has not yet released its Q1 profit figures, MarketBeat analysis estimates them to be around $1.87 billion.
A large-scale crypto downturn
Most publicly traded crypto companies reported similar results in the first quarter of 2025. Major crypto mining firm Marathon Digital Holdings started Q1 at nearly $17.50 and closed it at $11.00, a loss of over 37%. Competing crypto mining firm Riot Platforms opened Q1 2025 at just under $10.50 and closed it at $7.12, a loss of over 32%. Bitfarms, an energy infrastructure and crypto mining firm, opened the year at $1.56 and closed the first quarter at $0.7882, losing nearly half its value.
Datacenter and crypto mining firm Hut 8 started the year at $21.10 and ended the quarter at $11.62, resulting in a loss of nearly 45%. The firm continues painting red candles at the time of writing despite its recent partnership with US President Donald Trump’s sons to launch American Bitcoin, aiming to build the world’s biggest Bitcoin mining operation with strategic reserves. The list continues. Datacenter and mining firm Hive Digital Technologies saw its stock go from $2.97 to $1.45 in Q1, losing more than half its price. Lastly, mining hardware producer Canaan Creative started the quarter at $2.11 and ended at $0.8778 for a loss of nearly 58.4%.
Geopolitics plays a role
The broader stock market, not just the crypto industry, has also taken a significant hit widely attributed to recent geopolitical shifts. United States stock market index S&P 500 opened the quarter at $5,890 and closed at $5,610 — losing over 4.75%. Market participants feel uncertain as US President Donald Trump continues waging a trade war on multiple fronts. This week, reports suggest that concerns over a global trade war continue to pressure traditional and cryptocurrency markets as investors brace for a potential US tariff announcement on April 2.
Founder of Obchakevich Research, Alex Obchakevich, told Cointelegraph: “Trump’s tariffs are weighing heavily on the market, making it as unpredictable as possible.” He pointed out that Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy) is holding up surprisingly well, with its price losing just under 3.95% as it went from $300.11 down to $288.27 during Q1 2025. He said: “Its stock has held up thanks to a bet on Bitcoin and 400% growth in 2024.”