Cryptocurrency company Coinbase grossed $ 1.8 billion in revenue during the first quarter of 2021, more than it contributed throughout 2020, ahead of its direct listing next week.
Why it’s important: The public listing of Coinbase is highly anticipated and considered by the privileged as an event that will bring validation to the industry.
- Coinbase’s business is heavily dependent on bitcoin and the cryptocurrency market in general, so it’s no surprise that CFO Alesia Haas highlighted during a brief presentation on Tuesday how the company manages its revenue and expenses.
What they say: “To state the obvious, our business is hard to predict,” Haas said during the scripted comments, adding that it is mainly because he cannot predict the prices of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
- As such, the company anticipates multiple revenue and expense scenarios so that it can be prepared. It also uses periods of high profits to accumulate its balance sheet and has reserves during so-called “cryptographic winters” when prices fall, so it can continue to invest in long-term areas.
- “We try to unbalance ourselves in terms of profitability over time,” he added.
By numbers:
- Income: Revenue of $ 1.8 billion
- Adjusted EBITDA: $ 1.1 billion
- Net income: $ 730-800 million
- Negotiation volume: $ 335 billion
- Verified users: 56 million
- Users who make monthly transactions: 6.1 million
In depth: Coinbase’s public debut brings cryptography to Main Street