ARK Invest Capitulates on Coinbase: $17M Dump Ends 72-Hour Buying Spree

The "buy the dip" narrative just hit a wall. After aggressively accumulating Coinbase (COIN) shares earlier this week, ARK Invest flipped net short on the exchange Thursday, unloading approximately $17.5 million in stock across its ARKK, ARKF, and ARKW funds. The reversal marks a decisive break in Cathie Wood’s strategy, signaling that even the market’s loudest crypto bull is de-risking as regulatory headwinds in Nevada compound a brutal 38% year-to-date slide.

The Receipt: The Pivot

According to ARK’s daily trade notifications, the firm sold 98,245 shares of Coinbase on Feb. 5. This liquidation stands in stark contrast to the firm’s activity just 48 hours prior, when ARK funds were reportedly snapping up over $30 million in COIN as the stock pierced support levels. The sudden capitulation suggests that internal risk models at ARK may have triggered a forced rotation, or that the firm’s conviction buckled under the weight of Coinbase’s expanding legal battles.

The message to the street is binary: If the sector's highest-conviction whale is trimming exposure at $179, the bottom is not in.

The Catalyst: Nevada’s Gamble

The timing of the sale aligns with a fresh regulatory vector. The Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) filed a complaint against Coinbase this week, alleging its new "event-based contracts" constitute unlicensed sports wagering. While Coinbase maintains these are CFTC-regulated derivatives, the prospect of a state-by-state legal trench war threatens the revenue diversification thesis that bulls, including ARK, have relied on to justify COIN's premium.

Market Reaction

Coinbase shares struggled to hold $179 in pre-market trading, now down ~38% YTD. The stock has severely underperformed Bitcoin (-13% YTD) in 2026, decoupling from the underlying asset it is meant to track. With spot volumes drying up and the "crypto equity" trade facing a repricing, ARK's exit removes a critical psychological floor for the stock.