A disciplined startup emerges from the Wild West of crypto

The Economist (06/28/2018)
  • San-Francisco based Coinbase is widely regarded as the most reputable cryptocurrency brokerage.
  • Founded in 2012 by serial entrepreneur Brian Armstrong (inspired by education startup struggles paying tutors abroad) and Goldman alum Fred Ehrsam, Coinbase has 20 million individual accounts holding $20 billion in digital currencies.
  • Building trust by securing state licensing helped vault Coinbase to a rumored $8 billion valuation.
  • However, app downloads have fallen (see chart) in line with bitcoin.
  • In addition to volatility, Coinbase’s threats include increasing crypto regulations, competition (downward pressure on fees) and hacks.