Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase is investigating a price increase in bitcoin offshoot bitcoin cash that happened hours before it said it would launch support for the new digital currency.

The price of the digital coin was seen rising sharply before Coinbase announced its support for the buying and selling of bitcoin cash on its platform.

It subsequently pulled the feature after prices were seen to fluctuate wildly compared to other exchanges, and said it would likely return on Wednesday. Coinbase said the bitcoin cash function was halted due to "significant volatility."

Coinbase said that employees at the venue have been "prohibited from trading in bitcoin cash for several weeks."

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The firm's CEO Brian Armstrong then published a blogpost on the matter, and said Coinbase's trading policy prohibits staff from "trading on 'material non-public information,' such as when a new asset will be added to our platform."

He said the company would conduct a probe into whether employees violated its trading policy.