Coinbase founder Brian Armstrong got two big things right: He understood early on that bitcoin was a trillion-dollar opportunity, and that regular people would need a simple, regulator-friendly way to access it.
But it’s an open question whether bitcoin and its ilk will become a genuine alternative to fiat currencies, gold, and finance as we known it, or remain little more than a digital gambling den.
When Coinbase went public in April, some saw it as a critical moment for the crypto sector the nine-year-old company helped build.
The whole point of bitcoin and other virtual assets, for some purists, is that you don’t need a bank or other intermediary to use it.
Many of bitcoin’s early supporters had rebellious or libertarian views, and some in the community also bristled at playing nice with the regulatory authorities.
His instincts have so far served him well: Armstrong correctly understood that regular people would need an easy on-ramp to the mysterious and technical world of crypto.
Coinbase is now valued by the stock market at more than $46 billion, and it’s the largest exchange in the US.
Armstrong described his vision in simple terms: Corporate social activism is likely to backfire by dividing employees, and distracting enterprises from their true purpose.
Then late last year, the New York Times reported that 15 Black Coinbase employees had left or been pushed out in 2018 and 2019; many had reported racist or discriminatory treatment to human resources on their way out.
Jeff John Roberts wrote the book on Coinbase—literally; it’s called Kings of Crypto, and it chronicles the exchange’s rise from Y Combinator startup to the biggest market for virtual assets in the US.
On Armstrong becoming a more polished speaker:“He’s had a ton of coaching.
“The price of bitcoin is purely a function of the market’s imagination.