Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong Sold a Large Block of Stock

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The day that

Coinbase

Global stock went public, CEO Brian Armstrong sold shares.

In a conventional initial public offering, early investors and company executives and directors are barred from selling stock for several months before a so-called lockup period expires. But Coinbase (ticker: COIN), a cryptocurrency exchange, went public on April 14 through a direct listing, in which existing shareholders sell stock on the open market.

Armstrong—Coinbase’s co-founder, CEO, and chairman—sold 750,000 shares on April 14 for a total around $292 million, a per-share average price of $389.10. According to a form he filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Armstrong sold the shares through a living trust that he controls. The trust now owns 300,358 Coinbase shares. Armstrong also owns vested and unvested stock options representing at least 12 million Coinbase shares.

The company didn’t respond to a request to make Armstrong available for comment. He has been Coinbase’s CEO since the company’s inception in May 2012. Armstrong, a former software engineer at

Airbnb

(ABB), was CEO of Universitytutor.com.

Barron’s has highlighted Coinbase stock as the best way to play the Bitcoin boom. Tom Loverro, a partner at venture-capital firm IVP, which led a funding round for the company in 2017, told us that it is “a well-lit venue that’s well-regulated, and in constant dialogue with regulators and lawmakers.” Coinbase stock already has proven resilient in the face of a Bitcoin slump.

Inside Scoop is a regular Barron’s feature covering stock transactions by corporate executives and board members—so-called insiders—as well as large shareholders, politicians, and other prominent figures. Due to their insider status, these investors are required to disclose stock trades with the Securities and Exchange Commission or other regulatory groups.

Write to Ed Lin at edward.lin@barrons.com and follow @BarronsEdLin.