Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has responded to recent claims that Coinbase did not actually purchase the Bitcoin it purchased for BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF.
BlackRock chose Coinbase as the broker for on-chain transactions of BTC purchased through ETFs.
In addition, Coinbase's new product, cbBTC, was accused of being a centralized asset.
In response to these claims, Armstrong made the following statement on social media:
“Not sure what this is all about. All ETF minting and burns we process are ultimately done on-chain. Institutional clients have trade finance and OTC options before the trades are done on-chain. This is the norm for all our institutional clients. All funds are settled in our Prime vaults (on-chain) in approximately 1 business day.”
Armstrong also said Coinbase is transparent as a public company that is audited annually by Deloitte, adding that institutional clients value privacy and would not appreciate having their addresses “mined” for public scrutiny.
He also addressed concerns about Coinbase’s new product cbBTC, explaining that it is indeed a centralized asset. “As for cbBTC, yes you are trusting a central custodian to store the underlying BTC, we have never claimed otherwise,” he said.
Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas joined the debate in support of Armstrong’s stance, saying: “People keep asking me if I believe Armstrong. Yes, I do. Because BlackRock doesn’t joke around. If Coinbase played with their BTC, they would be furious, and it would be a violation of the 1933 Act.”
Balchunas explained that Bitcoin investors, like gold investors in the past, are naturally skeptical of institutions:
“Instead of looking in the mirror, Bitcoiners are looking for a scapegoat to blame for the selling pressure. The blame should be on ETFs, but all they’ve done is save your assets from being wiped out over and over again.”
Balchunas likened the current situation to the past when gold ETFs were accused of being “paper gold,” but those claims were eventually debunked.
*This is not investment advice.