Coinbase is now facing a fresh legal challenge from shareholders following a newly filed class action lawsuit.
On May 22, 2025, investor Brady Nessler submitted a 48-page complaint to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, alleging that Coinbase and its executives misled investors by failing to disclose key events that significantly impacted the company’s stock price.
Breach and $20M Extortion Scandal
At the heart of the case is a data breach that, according to the complaint, was kept from the public until May 15, 2025—months after it occurred.
Cybercriminals allegedly bribed international customer support staff to gain access to internal systems, stealing user information such as names, addresses, and identification documents. The breach led to a $20 million extortion attempt.
Although Coinbase claimed that fewer than 1% of active users were affected, the disclosure still rattled investors. Coinbase stock (COIN) fell over 7% to around $245 on the same day of the announcement.
FCA Fine and Regulatory Omission
The lawsuit also references a $4.5 million penalty levied by the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority in July 2024. The FCA determined that Coinbase had onboarded over 13,000 high-risk customers in breach of a 2020 agreement—an issue that the company failed to disclose during its IPO process. According to Nessler, this omission artificially inflated the company’s stock price, misleading investors during and after the offering.
The complaint names Coinbase Global Inc., CEO Brian Armstrong, and CFO Alesia Haas as defendants, with Nessler seeking compensatory damages on behalf of all shareholders who acquired Coinbase stock between April 14, 2021, and May 14, 2025.
Kosta Gushterov
Reporter at Coindoo
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Source: https://coindoo.com/coinbase-faces-new-class-action-over-data-breach-fca-fine-and-investor-losses/