Consumer complaint received 2017-11-29
Company: Coinbase, Inc.
State: NY
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service
Sub-product: Virtual currency
Issue: Fraud or scam

Complaint:
I have an account with Coinbase containing Bitcoins ( BTC ) currently valued at more than {$100000.00}. Despite a history of transfers of money between my Coinbase account and my bank account on numerous occasions, Coinbase suddenly and erroneously froze my Coinbase account without explanation more than one month ago. I am prevented from selling, buying, transferring or accessing my property and also cutoff from all transaction history and other information.

After repeated prompting via emails and phone calls, Coinbase advised me that I am locked out of my account as a result of a security software error on their end and that they would look into it. That was a month ago. My Coinbase support account will show email after email ( all initiated by me ) attempting to engage Coinbase in basic dialog during this time so that Coinbase might solve this technical error. Similarly, the support records will show numerous calls ( all initiated by me ) to Coinbases phone support. At no time has Coinbase proactively contacted me, followed up or provided any meaningful response or made any attempt to fix the errors in their system in order to provide me with access to my property. Each email and call results in the same thing -- a form response of " we will get back to you. '' Coinbase does not get back to you.

During my most recent call with Coinbase, I was advised that the department that can handle the required technical fix is also the department processing new customer accounts and is very backed up with its new business endeavors. This is obviously ludicrous on its face telling an existing customer that a minor technical issue that is cutting him off from his property can not be timely handled because Coinbase would like to increase its influx of new customers. Any broker or bank or other online service would have dealt with this issue within five minutes during the initial phone inquiry.

I believe Coinbase has engaged in fraud by knowingly marketing a service it knows it can not actually provide. Coinbase markets itself as an online wallet and vault in which to safely store and use your Bitcoins. However, as shown by my situation and hundreds and hundreds of similar complaints from other users, they do not have the actual ability at this point in time to provide their services at a basic, commercially reasonable level. And Coinbase knows this. Coinbase knows it does not have the infrastructure to timely and adequately meet customer needs. They do not have the necessary resources to address even the most basic customer inquiries or to address technical issues arising from their system. Yet Coinbase continues to bring in new customers, which will only exacerbate their inability to provide the services they are selling. As a result of their inability to provide the promised services, Coinbase effectively cuts off consumers form their rightful property and forces risk of loss and lost profits on the consumer.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation