In addition to the estimated losses of $400 million, the hack raises an alert by targeting the most influential American company in the crypto industry.
In the long list of crypto asset companies that have been hacked, there are many examples of financial losses that are much more painful than what Coinbase appears to be facing with the attack revealed on Thursday (15).
Still, this case stands out for its relevance far beyond the estimated $400 million it will cost the company: this time, the victim was the most influential American company in the crypto industry.
Coinbase is the company that led the entry of digital assets into the traditional financial system, being the first publicly listed cryptocurrency exchange. It is the company responsible for the custody of most of the $122 billion in tokens belonging to spot bitcoin ETFs. It is also the company that led the industry's political effort by heavily investing to elect a group of pro-crypto lawmakers in Washington last year.
The revelation of the attack occurs just three days after Coinbase's major achievement in consolidating digital assets in the traditional market: its inclusion in the S&P 500 index. The attack, combined with news of an SEC (U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission) investigation into how the company reported its user numbers, caused Coinbase's stock to drop more than 7% yesterday.