Coinbase stock drops 4% after surprise Q1 loss as crypto trading slump bites!

Coinbase posted a first-quarter loss of $1.49 per share — a sharp miss against analyst expectations of a $0.27 profit — while revenue came in at $1.41 billion, roughly $110 million below the $1.52 billion Wall Street had pencilled in. Shares fell about 4% in after-hours trading Thursday.

The core trading business bore the brunt of weaker crypto markets. Transaction revenue totalled $755.8 million against an $805.2 million estimate, and subscription-and-services revenue — the segment investors watch most closely as a hedge against trading cyclicality — missed at $583.5 million versus $619.3 million expected.

Coinbase is leaning hard on diversification to cushion the blow. Trailing 12-month derivatives volume surged 169% year-over-year, retail derivatives revenue crossed a $200 million annualised run rate for the first time, and its Base blockchain processed 62% of global on-chain…