Coinbase
FeaturedThe easiest place to buy and sell crypto.
Founded in 2012 by Brian Armstrong and Fred Ehrsam, Coinbase was built to make cryptocurrency accessible to everyday people at a time when buying Bitcoin required navigating complex and unregulated exchanges. Coinbase quickly became the most trusted and regulated crypto exchange in the United States, serving over 100 million verified users across 100+ countries. The company made history in April 2021 when it became the first major cryptocurrency exchange to go public, listing directly on NASDAQ at a valuation of over $85 billion. Coinbase continues to expand into DeFi, NFTs, and Web3 infrastructure, positioning itself as the primary gateway to the crypto economy.
Active Founders
Brian Armstrong
Founder / CEO
Brian Armstrong is the co-founder and CEO of Coinbase. He studied computer science and economics at Rice University and worked as a software engineer at Airbnb before founding Coinbase. Inspired by the Bitcoin whitepaper, Brian set out to build an open financial system accessible to everyone. He has been a leading voice in advocating for crypto regulation and blockchain adoption globally, and Forbes has ranked him among the most influential people in the cryptocurrency space.
Fred Ehrsam
Co-Founder
Fred Ehrsam is the co-founder of Coinbase and co-founder of Paradigm, one of the most prominent crypto-focused investment funds. Before Coinbase, he was a Goldman Sachs trader. Fred played a pivotal role in shaping Coinbase's early product and business strategy. After leaving Coinbase in 2017, he co-founded Paradigm, which has backed some of the most important blockchain projects including Uniswap and Optimism.
Coinbase
