How To Delete A Coinbase Account

Despite the positives of Coinbase, certain quirks make Coinbase less desirable to some investors such as their complex pricing schedule. It's therefore a reasonable decision to close your account and seek an alternative exchange to Coinbase. If you're looking to remove personal details from Coinbase permanently, the most effective option is to close and delete the account. This article explains how to delete a Coinbase account step-by-step. We will also discuss situations where a Coinbase account may not be deleted and how to reinstate a disabled account.

Complete Tutorial on How To Delete a Coinbase Account

To successfully delete a Coinbase account or Coinbase Pro account, you will need to start the process on the web browser only. This is the only accepted means that the US-based cryptocurrency exchange can close your account with the company. To delete the Coinbase account, follow these steps.

1. Login to Coinbase

The first step is to visit the Coinbase website on a desktop or personal computer (PC). Once on the homepage, sign in to the account. If the account has been inactive for up to 30 days, the user will be forwarded a seven-digit authentication code to their registered mobile number or email. Once all these steps are completed, the Coinbase exchange will become accessible.

2. Withdraw funds

For account closures, all funds should be removed, including pending orders on the exchange. Coinbase is not responsible for lost funds if the account has been deleted. For a full tutorial on how to withdraw money from Coinbase, read this tutorial.

If the funds are below the withdrawal threshold, you can donate the balance to a non-profit called GiveCrypto.org. To do this, head to the profile page, click on ‘Close Account,' and then tap ‘Donate Balance' among the list of options shown. The funds will be immediately routed to the organization.

Alternatively, you can forfeit their balance to the Coinbase exchange by accessing the ‘Contact Us' page on their account. Then, choose ‘Managing my account' and select ‘Closing my account' from the list of options. Then select the ‘I would like to close my account' section, fill in the remaining fields, and click ‘Submit.’ The funds will automatically be transferred to Coinbase.

Step 3. Go to profile settings

Once funds have been transferred out of the Coinbase account, the next step is to head to the profile settings. To get there, click on the profile icon in the screen's far right-hand corner. Next, click on ‘Manage your profile' immediately below the username and email address. This will automatically open another tab to the user's profile, as depicted in the image.

4. Close the account

Once the profile pops open, scroll down to the base of the page to close your account. Then, tap on the red icon depicted as ‘Close Account’ on the right hand of the screen.

This will open up a cautionary popup that requests the account password. Type in the password and click the ‘Close Account' button to initiate the process. In the subsequent slide, click on ‘Close Account. The Coinbase account will be deleted within minutes. This will also wipe off the private keys of all cryptocurrencies stored previously in the deleted account.

How To Temporarily Disable A Coinbase Account

Even though competitor exchanges like Binance allow you to deactivate their accounts temporarily, this option is not available on the Coinbase platform. Furthermore, crypto traders should note that deleting a Coinbase account is irreversible, meaning they will lose all access and data linked to the deleted account. However, Coinbase will still retain some personal information on the deleted account for at least five years as part of its legal obligations to the government.

Deleting Coinbase Using The App

Coinbase does not support the mobile erasure of the user's account. The exchange says accounts can only be permanently closed on the web browser. This means you must use a desktop or PC to close the Coinbase account.

Reactivating A Deleted Coinbase Account

If you mistakenly delete an account, unfortunately, it will be permanently closed. There is no way to retrieve a deleted account from the Coinbase server. It's not possible to reactivate a deleted Coinbase account and you will need to open a new account as a new user using a different email and mobile number.

This is because deleted accounts will be logged into the Coinbase database and kept for over five years according to the exchange's Privacy Policy to prevent fraud. This means the email addresses and mobile numbers of such accounts cannot be used to create a new account on Coinbase.