While cryptocurrency is on a decline, with more than $600 billion of cryptocurrency wealth wiped out in the last several months, the CEO of Coinbase just became a billionaire. Brian Armstrong, the man behind cryptocurrency exchange operator Coinbase, oversaw a financing round in late October, in which the company he cofounded raised $300 million at a valuation of $8 billion.
After applying a customary discount for privately held companies, Armstrong’s stake in Coinbase is worth roughly $1.3 billion. Forbes estimated in January that Armstrong’s net worth was between $900 million and $1 billion. Though, Forbes also notes that it’s possible Armstrong’s personal cryptocurrency holdings may have taken a financial jab thanks to the declining value of bitcoin, ether and more crypto over the last several months.
However, the San Francisco based company has continued to solidify its position as the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the United States, while posting astonishing financial results. More than 20 million users are utilizing Coinbase, while the company is generating more profits – most likely generating $1.3 billion of revenue this year. Presenting those kind of numbers, Coinbase was able to gain attention from Tiger Global Management to lead its recent investment round, and other well-known names including Wellington Management and Andreesen Horowitz.
News BTC expressed its opinion, adding: “such figures should hardly come as a surprise. The crypto exchange has had a very busy 2018, launching a variety of products and services, making high-profile hires, and receiving prestigious licenses to operate.”
The firm launched four new products this summer that are aimed at the institutional market – Coinbase Custody, Coinbase Prime, Coinbase Institutional Coverage Group and Coinbase Markets. In September, the firm was reportedly exploring the possibility of launching their own Bitcoin ETF, while members of Coinbase are believed to have consulted with BlackRock Inc. – the world’s largest global investment management firm – to aid in their research.
It even added several new digital assets recently, in addition to expanding the trading pairs, offered to include additional stablecoin pairs. To follow through and provide such a functionality, the firm partnered with Circle to launch their own dollar-backed digital currency, USDC.
