Estimated reading time: 2 min
Due to the potential for losses, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) considers this investment to be high risk.
What are the key risks?
1. You could lose all the money you invest
- The performance of most cryptoassets can be highly volatile, with their value dropping as quickly as it can rise. You should be prepared to lose all the money you invest in cryptoassets.
- The cryptoasset market is largely unregulated. There is a risk of losing money or any cryptoassets you purchase due to risks such as cyber-attacks, financial crime and firm failure.
2. You should not expect to be protected if something goes wrong
- The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) doesn't protect this type of investment because it's not a 'specified investment' under the UK regulatory regime – in other words, this type of investment isn't recognised as the sort of investment that the FSCS can protect. Learn more by using the FSCS investment protection checker.
- The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) will not be able to consider complaints related to this firm or Protection from the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) does not cover poor investment performance. If you have a complaint against an FCA regulated firm, FOS may be able to consider it. Learn more about FOS protection here.
3. You may not be able to sell your investment when you want to
- There is no guarantee that investments in cryptoassets can be easily sold at any given time. The ability to sell a cryptoasset depends on various factors, including the supply and demand in the market at that time.
- Operational failings such as technology outages, cyber-attacks and comingling of funds could cause unwanted delay and you may be unable to sell your cryptoassets at the time you want.
4. Cryptoasset investments can be complex
- Investments in cryptoassets can be complex, making it difficult to understand the risks associated with the investment.
- You should do your own research before investing. If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
5. Don't put all your eggs in one basket
- Putting all your money into a single type of investment is risky. Spreading your money across different investments makes you less dependent on any one to do well.
- A good rule of thumb is not to invest more than 10% of your money in high-risk investments.
If you are interested in learning more about how to protect yourself, visit the FCA's website here.
For further information about cryptoassets, visit the FCA's website here.
This is not an endorsement of cryptocurrency or any specific provider, service or offering. It is not a recommendation to trade or use any services.
Coinbase is the largest US-based crypto exchange and the second-largest exchange in the world by trading volume.
In this report, you'll find visualised data on Coinbase's user base, trading volume, revenue and income.
Coinbase users over time
Coinbase had 108 million users in 2022, up from 56 million people in 2021. This equates to 92.8% year-on-year growth.
The platform's user base is up over 100x in the past 9 years.
Coinbase's user base has grown steadily from Q1 2018 through Q3 2022.
One of the biggest jumps in quarterly growth was when Coinbase's user base expanded over 20% from Q1 2021 to Q2 2021.
A similar jump occurred when it expanded by 21.9% from Q3 2021 to Q4 2021.
The number of monthly transacting users (MTU) on Coinbase saw its biggest quarterly jump in the last 2 years from Q1 2021 to Q2 2021 when the number of MTUs increased by 25.9%.
The number of MTUs on the platform peaked in Q4 of 2021 and has been in decline since then.
More than half (53.34%) of Coinbase's website traffic comes from residents of the US.
UK residents are responsible for 7.82% of the traffic to Coinbase, while Indian residents comprise just over 5% of the traffic to the site.
Coinbase trading volume trends
- Daily trading volume on Coinbase peaked at US$11.12 billion in 2021.
- The closest peak in daily trading volume during a different year occurred in 2022, when it hit US$5.17 billion.
- Of the years prior to 2021, peaks in daily trading volume paled in comparison to the peak in 2021.
- 2020 was the year with the highest peak in daily trading volume prior to the 2021 peak, and it was only 24.37% of 2021's peak.
Quarterly trading volume on Coinbase peaked in Q4 2021 at US$547 billion.
The second-highest peak in quarterly trading volume occurred in Q2 2021, when it hit US$462 billion.
Quarterly trading volume on Coinbase has been in decline since Q4 2021.
As trading volume on Coinbase increases so too does the number of assets left in the platform's custody, though, there isn't a direct correlation between the 2 metrics.
The largest differences between quarterly trading volume and the number of assets left in the custody of the platform occurred in Q2 2021 and Q4 2021.
While quarterly trading volume as a percentage of total trading volume for Bitcoin (BTC) has dropped from 50% to just over 30% since Q1 2020, quarterly trading volume for Ethereum (ETH) has risen from 16% to 33% in the same time frame.
Since Q3 2020, the quarterly trading volume as a percentage of total trading volume for the total of all cryptos traded on Coinbase aside from BTC and ETH has been larger than that of BTC or ETH.
Coinbase revenue and income breakdown
- Quarterly net revenue for Coinbase peaked in Q4 2021 at US$2.27 billion.
- Prior to that, it peaked in Q2 2021 when it hit US$1.93 billion.
- Quarterly net revenue saw its biggest jump from Q4 2020 to Q1 2021 when it increased 323%.
- It saw its largest decline from Q4 2021 to Q1 2022 when it decreased by 55.5%.
- Quarterly net revenue for Coinbase has been in decline since Q4 2021.
Retail investments drive the majority of net revenue for Coinbase when compared with institutional investments. This dynamic was particularly amplified from Q4 2020 to Q1 2022.
Since Q1 2020, the highest amount of quarterly revenue that came from institutional investments was US$102 million in Q2 2021, while the highest amount of quarterly revenue from retail investment was US$2.18 billion in Q4 2021.
While net revenue for Coinbase was still in the green as of Q3 2022, net income for the company has been in the red since Q1 2022.
Net revenue has been consistently decreasing since Q4 2021, while net income began to decrease around the same time but has bounced back as of Q2 2022.
Cryptocurrencies aren't regulated in the UK and there's no protection from the Financial Ombudsman or the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. Your capital is at risk. Capital gains tax on profits may apply.
Cryptocurrencies are speculative and investing in them involves significant risks - they're highly volatile, vulnerable to hacking and sensitive to secondary activity. The value of investments can fall as well as rise and you may get back less than you invested. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. This content shouldn't be interpreted as a recommendation to invest. Before you invest, you should get advice and decide whether the potential return outweighs the risks. Finder, or the author, may have holdings in the cryptocurrencies discussed.
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