Datastream

Institutional Crypto Trading on Coinbase Reaches Record Volume

Published

2 years ago

March 10, 2021

Niccolo Conte

Coinbase Institutional Trading Volume

The Briefing

Institutional trading volume on Coinbase has increased more than fivefold since Q1’2018 ($11B), reaching $57B in Q4’2020
Despite the surge in institutional volume, retail volume has not reached the high set in Q1’2018

Coinbase’s Institutional Volume Surges Alongside Bitcoin’s Price

As Coinbase prepares to go public with a direct listing on the Nasdaq, the company has released its S-1 filing detailing just about every aspect of their business.

Along with surging users and crypto prices, Coinbase’s trading volume has also increased exponentially, with institutions leading the way.

This graphic looks at the return of rising institutional and retail trading volumes on Coinbase over the past two years alongside bitcoin’s price.

Coinbase’s Volume and Active Users are Rising

Crypto trading volume on Coinbase set record highs in Q4’2020 with $89B in volume, with institutions making up $57B. While recent institutional volume is more than five times Q1’2018 volume, retail trading volume is still below Q1’2018 levels despite bitcoin making new all-time highs.

Overall, trading volumes on Coinbase’s platform are far greater today than they were at the peak of the last bitcoin bull run. However, monthly transacting users on the exchange in Q4’2020 just barely surpassed the numbers of Q1’2018.

Coinbase’s Monthly Transacting Users per Quarter

Date	Monthly Transacting Users (millions)
Q1'2018	2.7M
Q2'2018	1.2M
Q3'2018	0.9M
Q4'2018	0.9M
Q1'2019	0.8M
Q2'2019	1.3M
Q3'2019	1.2M
Q4'2019	1.0M
Q1'2020	1.3M
Q2'2020	1.5M
Q3'2020	2.1M
Q4'2020	2.8M

Along with Coinbase’s volume figures showing a greater increase in institutional volume compared to retail, it’s clear that institutions have bought into the bull run while retail investors have returned to transacting crypto more slowly.

The Institutions Buying into the Bitcoin Bull Run

It began with Michael Saylor’s company MicroStrategy purchasing $250M worth of bitcoin in August of 2020, before eventually investing a total of $2.2B in the cryptocurrency. These aggressive bitcoin purchases were followed up by Jack Dorsey’s Square and Elon Musk’s Tesla investing $220M and $1.5B respectively, with Tesla also revealing plans to accept bitcoin payments in the future.

Along with these companies betting on bitcoin, banks have renewed their interest in cryptocurrency as well. Earlier this month the Bank of New York Mellon set up a digital assets unit to help customers manage their cryptocurrencies, and Goldman Sachs just announced the return of its cryptocurrency trading desk.

While it’s rumored that Goldman Sachs could even pursue listing a bitcoin-focused ETF, the Chicago Board Options Exchange has already filed a request with the SEC to list VanEck’s bitcoin ETF, which would be the first of its kind in the United States.

>>Like this? Then you might like this article comparing bitcoin’s market cap to other cryptocurrencies

Where does this data come from?

Source: Coinbase S-1 Filing
Details: Volatility on this graphic is Coinbase’s internal measure of crypto volatility in the market relative to prior periods.

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Money

Charted: Public Trust in the Federal Reserve

Public trust in the Federal Reserve chair has hit its lowest point in 20 years. Get the details in this infographic.

Published

2 weeks ago

May 23, 2023

Marcus Lu

The Briefing

Gallup conducts an annual poll to gauge the U.S. public’s trust in the Federal Reserve
After rising during the COVID-19 pandemic, public trust has fallen to a 20-year low

Charted: Public Trust in the Federal Reserve

Each year, Gallup conducts a survey of American adults on various economic topics, including the country’s central bank, the Federal Reserve.

More specifically, respondents are asked how much confidence they have in the current Fed chairman to do or recommend the right thing for the U.S. economy. We’ve visualized these results from 2001 to 2023 to see how confidence levels have changed over time.

Methodology and Results

The data used in this infographic is also listed in the table below. Percentages reflect the share of respondents that have either a “great deal” or “fair amount” of confidence.

Year	Fed chair	% Great deal or Fair amount
2023	Jerome Powell	36%
2022	Jerome Powell	43%
2021	Jerome Powell	55%
2020	Jerome Powell	58%
2019	Jerome Powell	50%
2018	Jerome Powell	45%
2017	Janet Yellen	45%
2016	Janet Yellen	38%
2015	Janet Yellen	42%
2014	Janet Yellen	37%
2013	Ben Bernanke	42%
2012	Ben Bernanke	39%
2011	Ben Bernanke	41%
2010	Ben Bernanke	44%
2009	Ben Bernanke	49%
2008	Ben Bernanke	47%
2007	Ben Bernanke	50%
2006	Ben Bernanke	41%
2005	Alan Greenspan	56%
2004	Alan Greenspan	61%
2003	Alan Greenspan	65%
2002	Alan Greenspan	69%
2001	Alan Greenspan	74%

Data for 2023 collected April 3-25, with this statement put to respondents: “Please tell me how much confidence you have [in the Fed chair] to recommend the right thing for the economy.”

We can see that trust in the Federal Reserve has fluctuated significantly in recent years.

For example, under Alan Greenspan, trust was initially high due to the relative stability of the economy. The burst of the dotcom bubble—which some attribute to Greenspan’s easy credit policies—resulted in a sharp decline.

On the flip side, public confidence spiked during the COVID-19 pandemic. This was likely due to Jerome Powell’s decisive actions to provide support to the U.S. economy throughout the crisis.

Measures implemented by the Fed include bringing interest rates to near zero, quantitative easing (buying government bonds with newly-printed money), and emergency lending programs to businesses.

Confidence Now on the Decline

After peaking at 58%, those with a “great deal” or “fair amount” of trust in the Fed chair have tumbled to 36%, the lowest number in 20 years.

This is likely due to Powell’s hard stance on fighting post-pandemic inflation, which has involved raising interest rates at an incredible speed. While these rate hikes may be necessary, they also have many adverse effects:

Negative impact on the stock market
Increases the burden for those with variable-rate debts
Makes mortgages and home buying less affordable

Higher rates have also prompted many U.S. tech companies to shrink their workforces, and have been a factor in the regional banking crisis, including the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank.

Where does this data come from?

Source: Gallup (2023)

Data Notes: Results are based on telephone interviews conducted April 3-25, 2023, with a random sample of –1,013—adults, ages 18+, living in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. For results based on this sample of national adults, the margin of sampling error is ±4 percentage points at the 95% confidence level. See source for details.