Crypto traders locked out as AWS outage cripples Coinbase and Robinhood

• Users were unable to access accounts or execute trades for more than two hours.
• Other affected platforms included Snapchat, Reddit, Hulu, Xbox, and Fortnite.
• Crypto traders expressed frustration as reliability concerns resurfaced.

A major internet disruption on Monday briefly brought parts of the digital economy to a halt, as an Amazon Web Services (AWS) outage crippled platforms including Coinbase and Robinhood.

The two-hour blackout disrupted trading activities, streaming services, and gaming networks, reminding users of the world’s heavy reliance on cloud-based infrastructure.

The outage, which began in the early hours of Monday, affected users across regions, leaving them locked out of their accounts or unable to complete transactions.

AWS failure stalls major crypto exchanges

Coinbase, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, was among the first to report problems.

Users attempting to log in or execute trades encountered error messages and account timeouts.

The exchange later confirmed that the issue stemmed from an ongoing AWS outage, clarifying that customer funds remained secure.

Coinbase’s social media post on X stated, “We’re aware many users are currently unable to access Coinbase due to an AWS outage. Our team is working on the issue and we’ll provide updates here. All funds are safe.”

The exchange restored full functionality after more than two hours, but traders expressed frustration online, with some claiming losses or hinting at legal action over interrupted trades.

Robinhood, another major platform, also confirmed technical problems linked to AWS.

“AWS (one of our third-party vendors) is experiencing an outage,” the platform said in a post on X, assuring customers that its teams were working on a fix.

For investors trading fast-moving digital assets, even short-term downtime can trigger missed opportunities and price discrepancies, fuelling debate about the industry’s dependence on centralised cloud providers.

Internet-wide disruption exposes cloud dependency

The AWS failure did not stop with crypto platforms.

A string of major online services, including Snapchat, Reddit, Hulu, Grammarly, Xbox Network, Fortnite, and Electronic Arts, also experienced slowdowns or temporary access issues.

The outage highlighted how deeply embedded Amazon’s infrastructure is in global online operations—from financial transactions to entertainment and gaming.

Cloud computing, while offering flexibility and scalability, concentrates risk when one major provider experiences disruption.

AWS remains the backbone for thousands of businesses, making the impact of such outages widespread and immediate.

Monday’s incident renewed questions about redundancy and contingency planning across industries that rely on third-party data hosting.

Repeated disruptions raise reliability concerns

The recurrence of outages underscores broader concerns within the crypto community about system reliability during volatile market conditions.

Retail investors depend on uninterrupted access to execute time-sensitive trades, and any downtime can erode confidence in trading platforms.

Industry observers note that as digital asset adoption expands, exchanges must invest further in resilient infrastructure and communication transparency.

AWS under scrutiny as reliance grows

Amazon Web Services has long been the world’s largest cloud provider, hosting vast portions of the internet’s most popular platforms.

Its occasional outages, however, reveal a single-point-of-failure problem that extends beyond crypto.

Each incident amplifies concerns over whether global businesses are too dependent on one company for core online operations.

AWS has not yet detailed the specific cause of Monday’s disruption but confirmed service restoration later in the day.

The event reignited discussion on cloud diversification, pushing firms to evaluate hybrid or multi-cloud strategies to mitigate future risks.

As the digital economy continues to expand, outages like this serve as a warning of the fragility underlying its seamless surface.

Even brief interruptions can ripple across finance, communication, and entertainment, showing how interconnected and centralised the internet has become.

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