Coinbase top executives reportedly made over $1B via stock sales
One of Coinbase co-founders has sold close to $500 million of his shares of the company.
A new Wall Street Journal report has revealed that four top officials of Coinbase have cumulatively made over $1 billion by selling the company shares since the exchange went public last year.
According to the report, the officials involved in the act include co-founders Brian Armstrong and Fred Ehrsam, Chief Operating Officer Emilie Choi, and Chief Product Officer Surojit Chatterjee.
The report noted that Fred Ehrsam had made the highest sales with “nearly half a billion dollars in stock sales” while others like Armstrong have sold shares worth $292 million.
The other executives, Choi and Chatterjee, have sold $226 million and $110 million worth of shares each.
The shares were said to have been sold at varying times of the market, with some selling when the stock was trading for as high as $422 and some at $189.
According to WSJ, a Coinbase spokesperson reportedly said
“These Coinbase executives maintain large positions in the company, reflecting their commitment to our long-term opportunities.”
Coinbase’s recent stock performance
The price performance of the only public listed crypto exchange has not been overly encouraging in recent times.
In its earnings call from the first three months of 2022 (Q1 2022), the firm revealed that its revenue was dropping, and its user base was also reducing. This reduction has prompted some of the firm’s recent actions as it seeks to widen its horizon into new markets.
As of press time, Coinbase stock is trading for $74.69, which is over 70% lower than its year-to-date (YTD) metric.
However, that has not stopped the exchange from getting into the list of Fortune 500. The Fortune 500 measures the largest 500 companies in the United States by gross income, and Coinbase is the first crypto firm to enter the list.
According to the foreword written by Alyson Shontell, Fortune Editor-in-Chief, Coinbase benefited from the “freakish circumstances of COVID.”