Both Marc and Gokul have worked in the cryptocurrency and FinTech industries for a long period and will bring tremendous experience to the Coinbase board. It is expected that the two new board members will help the company steer ahead its IPO plans.
Two popular personalities from the world of finance and technology (FinTech as we know) – Marc Andreessen and Gokul Rajaram – have joined the Coinbase board as per the official announcement on Monday, August 31. The world’s largest crypto exchange continues its plans to expand its products and services further.
We're excited to announce the addition of two new leaders to Coinbase's boardroom. Please join us in welcoming @pmarca of @a16z and @gokulr. Both bring a wealth of experience that will benefit the company, our customers and the broader #crypto community. https://t.co/3JBLMbdqSp
— Coinbase 🛡️ (@coinbase) August 31, 2020
Mr. Andreessen is a popular venture capitalist and well-known personality among the investors’ circle. Similarly, Gokul Rajaram is an executive at DoorDash and a veteran of Square and Google. Both these personalities are long-term proponents of cryptocurrencies and know the nuances of the market. Well, these two people will bring along a lot of their financial expertise to Coinbase, as the crypto trading platform gears up for an IPO in the coming months.
Andreessen has been an early investor in Bitcoin and Ethereum. Besides, he also holds a wide experience in crypto projects with a number of crypto projects under his investment wing. This includes investments in DeFi platforms like Compound as well as stablecoin firm MakerDAO. Speaker to Fortune about his decision to join Coinbase, Andreessen said:
“Since investing in 2013, I’ve seen Coinbase grow from an early-stage startup into the most trusted and respected company in crypto. Coinbase is the company that will help forge this future and bring crypto into the mainstream.”
Coinbase’s Alleged IPO Plans
In July 2020, a report from Reuters suggested that the San Francisco-based crypto exchange is planning to go public. As per the report, Coinbase can go for an Initial Public Offering (IPO) later this year or by early 2021. However, the exchange has yet to register with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) confirming its intent.
As per its last calculations in 2018, Coinbase’s valuations stood at $8 billion. Now as Coinbase looks to expand its operations, it plans to go for raising public money. However, sources said that Coinbase might opt for direct listing instead of going for a traditional IPO.
Well, there are certainly no clear plans suggested by Coinbase as on date. Besides, Coinbase has yet to clarify any specific role for the new board members considering its future plans. With this appointment, Marc and Gokul will be replacing American businessman Barry Schuler and Chris Dixon, a partner at Andreessen Horowitz. Welcoming them to the board, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong wrote:
“The company sincerely thanks both Chris and Barry for their past and continuing contributions to Coinbase and wishes them well as they share their knowledge and insight with the next generation of innovators, builders and technology pioneers. Both of them have been a major contributor to Coinbase’s success”.
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