Cryptocurrency platform Coinbase Global Inc. revealed late Tuesday preliminary first-quarter revenue that topped $1 billion, surpassing revenue for all of last year, and a quarterly profit that approached $1 billion.
Coinbase COIN,
The company said it had 56 million verified users in the first quarter and an 11.3% market share of the cryptocurrencies market. First-quarter trading volume reached $335 billion, and quarterly revenue rose to about $1.8 billion, Coinbase said.
Net income for the quarter was between $730 million and $800 million, and adjusted EBITDA around $1.1 billion, the company said.
Coinbase filed to become public through a direct listing in February, showing a profit and 2020 revenue of $1.3 billion, more than double the company’s 2019 revenue. It swung to a net income of $322.3 million in 2020, versus a loss of $30.4 million for 2019.
The company plans to list on the Nasdaq under the ticker COIN.
Coinbase guided for a full-year 2021 average monthly transacting users of 7 million in the higher end, 5.5 million in a mid-range scenario assuming a flat cryptocurrencies market, and 4 million in a low-end scenario incorporating a “significant decrease in crypto market capitalization, similar to the decrease observed in 2018.”
“We expect meaningful growth in 2021 driven by transaction and custody revenue given the increased institutional interest in the crypto asset class,” Coinbase said.
It guided for expenses around $1.3 billion and $1.6 billion in the year “in order to scale our operations and to continue to drive product innovation,” it said. Coinbase also estimated one-off expenses around $35 million in the second quarter related to its direct listing.
