Coinbase-Neutrino-Chainalysis Debrief

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TBI - February 28, 2019

The whole Coinbase / Neutrino thing has gotten a bit out of control, and there still seems to be some misunderstanding around the role of blockchain analytics vendors.

Here’s a run down of the Coinbase fiasco from the past two weeks, and where blockchain analytics vendors actually come into play:

• Feb 19: Coinbase acquires “blockchain intelligence” startup Neutrino. In their announcement post, they write “Neutrino will help us prevent theft of funds from peoples’ accounts, investigate ransomware attacks, and identify bad actors. It will also help us bring more cryptocurrencies and features to more people while helping ensure compliance with local laws and regulations.” Coinbase says Neutrino’s tech is the best they’ve vetted, but they also seem keen to reduce dependence on third party vendors, who sources later say were increasingly moving to a “give-get” data model. (More on that later.)
• Feb 19: Oops. Analyst Arjun Balaji pretty much immediately points out that Neutrino’s team included the co-founder of a controversial Italian analytics company called Hacking Team.