CoinShares reports $21.7M loss tied to Terra implosion

On Tuesday, European cryptocurrency investment firm CoinShares posted its interim Q2 2022 results. Compared to the prior year's quarter, the firm's revenue declined from 19.6 million pounds ($23.89 million) to 14.2 million pounds ($17.31 million). At the same time, its net income fell from 26.6 million pounds ($32.42 million) in Q1 2021 to 0.1 million pounds ($0.12 million). 

CoinShares explained that the losses were largely tied to its exposure to the Terra (LUNA) — now called Terra Classic (LUNC) — ecosystem, which collapsed in May of this year:

"While our Asset Management business continued to generate solid profit, the Capital Markets business experienced a one-off loss of £17.7 million following the de-pegging of Terra Luna. The financial impact of this episode, despite being relatively small when compared to the losses incurred by other players in our industry, had a material impact on our quarter."

Coinshare Capital Markets typically does not take directional positions and was not directly exposed to the Terra Luna collapse. However, at the time of the incident, the firm was carrying a book linked to the TerraUSD stablecoin, resulting in an exceptional loss.

CoinShares CEO Jean-Marie Mognetti has nevertheless expressed optimism about the firm's future operations, saying:

"In light of the market turmoil, we have reviewed our risk profile and moved into a more defensive mode. CoinShares has sufficient resources to navigate the markets during this volatile time thanks to an effective strategy, a robust balance sheet, and a seasoned, world-class team."

Related: What is Terra (LUNA)? A beginner's guide

For its next steps, CoinShares plans to uplist into the Nasdaq Stockholm Main Market after gaining an Alternative Investment Fund Manager license. During the second quarter, CoinShares launched five new physical products, including CoinShares Physical FTX Token, CoinShares Physical Chainlink, CoinShares Physical Uniswap, CoinShares Physical Staked Polygon and CoinShares Physical Staked Cosmos. The firm possessed 220.8 million pounds ($269.15 million) in net assets at the end of Q2.