Did a platform glitch cause aggressive sports gambling push notifications? The CEO says it was a tech error.
During March Madness, the online gambling platform Coinbase, which facilitates controversial stock-market-style sports betting, bombarded at least one user with incessant notifications (three in less than one hour). A screenshot of these push notifications was widely shared on the social media platform X.
In response, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said the notifications were a “bug.”
Thank You for Flagging
Armstrong seemed to suggest that the company wasn’t aware of the push notifications until they became a social media controversy.
“Looks like there was a bug on targeting for these push notifications – getting fixed now,” Armstrong replied. “Apologies for the trouble, and thank you for raising it.”
He then went on to defend sports betting on prediction markets like Coinbase.
“[P]rediction markets are popular for some customers but not all, and we certainly don’t want to force it on anyone (notification spam is one form of that!),” he added.
Armstrong concluded by stating that Coinbase must “find the right balance of not pushing things on people they don’t want, but making sure whatever they want is there. Clearly we missed the mark in this case – we’ll take it as an opportunity to improve.”
Research indicates that direct marketing through push notifications significantly increases the risks associated with gambling. In the U.S., surveys show that half of online sports bettors chase losses.
Legal Troubles for Coinbase
The company is involved in litigation with at least four states — Connecticut, Illinois, Michigan, and Nevada — over its prediction market product.
A growing number of states have sought to thwart what they consider illegal sports gambling via federally regulated prediction markets. Kalshi is the leader in the space.
The scandals come at a sensitive time for Coinbase. The company’s stock was down about 30% through the first three months of 2026. Despite sports gambling, the firm’s core business remains cryptocurrency.
In 2025, Armstrong faced public scrutiny for involvement in a so-called mention market on Polymarket. No charges or formal accusations of misconduct have been filed against him related to the Polymarket episode.
Image by Oleg Gamulinskii from Pixabay
