Coinbase, the largest US cryptocurrency exchange, reported first-quarter earnings that surpassed expectations with a revenue of $1.6 billion and net income of $1.18 billion ($4.40 per share). The impressive results were driven by a surge in transactions due to the wider crypto market's upswing and favorable changes to crypto accounting rules.
Consumer transaction revenue doubled from the previous quarter, reaching $935.2 million, and volume was up over 93%, to $56 billion. Institutional trading also saw significant growth, with revenue increasing by 133% from the previous quarter and more than doubling in volume to $256 billion.
Bitcoin made up a third of both consumer and institutional transactions during this period. The price of Bitcoin increased by 57%, reaching an all-time high of $73,000 due to over $50 billion entering spot exchange-traded funds approved on Jan. 11 by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Coinbase's EBITDA was $1 billion, a significant increase from the previous year. The company also announced a minority stake in Circle, the issuer of stablecoin USDC, which grew by 30% in market capitalization during Q1.
Base, Coinbase's Ethereum layer-2 chain brought in $56.1 million with twice as many transactions as Ethereum and developer activity up by 800%. The company also launched its own stablecoin USDC on Base, which has seen increased usage since its launch.
Despite these strong earnings, Coinbase's transaction expenses grew by 73%, to $217 million. Looking forward to Q2, the company estimates its overall expenses to be as high as $890 million due primarily to elevated expenses associated with higher trading volumes and customer support and infrastructure costs.
The crypto market has shown signs of volatility in recent weeks, which could impact Coinbase's earnings in the coming quarters. However, the company remains optimistic about its future growth prospects as it continues to expand its offerings and capitalize on the growing interest in cryptocurrencies.