The recent surge in Bitcoin’s price, peaking over $60,000, caused technical difficulties for Coinbase, a leading cryptocurrency trading platform. Users reported zero balances in their accounts, raising concerns. The issue, attributed to a glitch, coincided with increased demand for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Coinbase acknowledged the problem on February 28, 2024, ensuring users about the safety of their assets and ongoing investigations.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong attributed the outage to a “large surge of traffic,” overwhelming the exchange’s infrastructure. This traffic spike likely stemmed from the approval of U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs and anticipation of Bitcoin’s April halving event, historically prompting increased cryptocurrency investment. The glitch affected user accounts, causing zero balances, buying/selling errors, and severe delays in fund transfers via the Ethereum ERC-20 network.
The incident sparked outrage among crypto enthusiasts on social media, frustrated by their inability to access funds or execute trades during a critical market period. Despite initial panic, Coinbase reassured users about asset security and ongoing resolution efforts.
This event highlights cryptocurrency exchanges’ challenges in managing traffic surges and trading activity, especially during market volatility. It emphasizes the need for robust technical infrastructure and customer support to address such issues promptly. Coinbase has begun seeing improvements in customer trading, though some users may still encounter errors due to high traffic levels.