September 19, 2024
Coinbase shares slide 12% on hot inflation report
Investors sold cryptocurrencies and shares of crypto-related stocks after inflation data showed prices continued to increase in September.

Monitors display Coinbase signage during the company’s initial public offering (IPO) at the Nasdaq MarketSite in New York, on Wednesday, April 14, 2021.

Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Shares of cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase dove more than 12% on Thursday after the Consumer Price Index showed inflation continued to increase in September beyond Wall Street’s expectations.

Bitcoin and other stocks tied to the success of crypto felt the pain, too. Riot Blockchain, Marathon Digital and Block (formerly Square) were all lower by around 7%, while Microstrategy was down about 6%.

The broader markets were also trading lower on the fresh inflation read from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. But crypto stocks saw steeper falls than major indices like the Nasdaq Composite, down around 1.9%, and the S&P 500, down about 1.2%.

In recent months, an increase in inflation has been followed by volatility on Wall Street. That’s because more disappointing news on inflation means the Federal Reserve may implement larger interest rate hikes, further slowing economic growth.

Thursday’s CPI data likely cements consecutive 0.75 percentage point rate hikes in November and December. That diminishes investor’s appetites for riskier assets, like cryptocurrencies and crypto-related equities.