Coinbase's UK division paid £411k on average in 2024 but cut headcount despite hiring resurgence
CB Payments Ltd, the UK arm of crypto giant Coinbase, had a decent 2024 according to accounts released via Companies House. Profit roughly tripled to €7.8m ($9.1m) in spite of a €4.1m fine from the Financial Conduct Authority for onboarding 'high-risk' customers. Interestingly, though, as Coinbase itself ballooned in size, CB Payments slightly deflated.
The accounts for CB Payments show that the firm had an average of 141 employees in 2024, down slightly from 144 employees in 2023. It appears to have even less than 141 today; the strategic report within the accounts says CB Payments has "an experienced, diverse and dedicated workforce of 138 employees." In that same time period, Coinbase's global organization grew by 10.4%, with headcount averaging 3,772 in 2024. Today, the firm has more than 4,200 employees.
The nature of the headcount change is unclear. A Coinbase spokesperson provided the following comment: "Coinbase operates as a remote-first company and does not disclose headcount specifics by country. However, our global workforce exceeds 4,200, and we can provide approximate figures for regions, such as several hundred employees across Europe."
Coinbase may have lost staff via attrition due to the intensity of its workplace. One of the most frequently cited negatives of working at Coinbase in global reviews on Blind is the work-life balance; one review said "I do not see anyone consistently working less than 55 hours."
The decrease in headcount has coincided with a big boost in pay for Coinbase's UK staff, however. In 2023, employees at CB Payments earned a total of €437.1k ($509.2k) in total compensation ('wages and salaries' plus 'share based payments'). In 2024, 141 average employees earned €474.2k ($553.2k). This makes the division a far more lucrative place to work than Coinbase at large, which paid staff an average of $476.7k in 2024.
Coinbase noted in its strategic report that, "due to the nascent nature of the cryptoeconomy, the pool of qualified talent is extremely limited" and that there's "intense competition" for that talent. There's apparently, then, an abundance of unqualified talent, considering Coinbase received 500,000 global applications for its jobs in the first half of this year. What category CB Payments' departures fit into is unknown.
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