Coinbase CEO spills on why the exchange didn’t bet the farm on Bitcoin

Crypto has a reputation for being a high-risk investment. So much so that even one of the world’s largest crypto companies was spooked out of betting the farm on Bitcoin.Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong revealed during a recent video talk on X that the exchange once considered adopting a Michael Saylor-style Bitcoin accumulation strategy — the kind that transformed Strategy into the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin today. But Armstrong said the company ultimately backed away, fearing the move could have wiped out its cash reserves and potentially “killed” the firm in its early years, according to Bloomberg.“There were definitely moments over the last 12 years where we thought, man, should we put 80% of our balance sheet into crypto — into Bitcoin specifically,” Armstrong said. “We made a conscious choice about risk.”Coinbase Chief Financial Officer Alesia Haas echoed this sentiment, saying the company didn’t want to be seen as competing against its own customers by heavily investing in a single cryptocurrency. Instead, Coinbase has taken a more conservative approach, adding roughly $153 million in crypto, mostly Bitcoin, to its investment portfolio in the first quarter of 2025. The exchange now holds about $1.3 billion worth of digital assets, according to its recent first-quarter update.In contrast, Michael Saylor’s Strategy has gone all in on Bitcoin, amassing more than 555,000 Bitcoin worth nearly $58 billion at today’s prices.The company’s latest purchase, a 15,355 Bitcoin addition earlier this month, brings it closer to founder Michael Saylor’s vision of transforming the firm into a “Bitcoin bank.”Strategy is hardly alone in this approach. According to Bitwise data from last month, 79 public companies now hold Bitcoin, collectively controlling 688,000 Bitcoin worth around $57 billion. However, Bitcoin prices have surged over 25% since then, pushing the value of these holdings significantly higher. Meanwhile, companies like Strategy and Metaplanet have added thousands more Bitcoins to their treasuries as the market rebounds.This also includes Bitcoin miners, small-cap firms, and new entrants like Twenty One Capital, a venture co-launched by Cantor Fitzgerald and Tether, which aims to emulate the Michael Saylor strategy.Crypto market moversBitcoin has gained 0.7% in the past 24 hours and is trading at $104,250.Ethereum is up 5.3% in the same period to $2,510.What we’re readingBlackRock beefs up quantum compute threat warnings to Bitcoin investors ― DL NewsDeFi Looping Comes to Apollo’s $1.3 Billion Credit Fund. What Could Go Wrong? ― UnchainedWhy most tokens = terrible investments ― Milk RoadSamourai Wallet developers stuck in legal limbo after prosecutors reject dismissal bid ― DL NewsKyle Baird is DL News’ Weekend Editor. Got a tip? Email at kbaird@dlnews.com.