Coinbase’s chief, Brian Armstrong, is contemplating a significant move: potentially relocating his company out of California in response to what he calls the state’s “deeply un-American” proposed wealth tax.
Speaking candidly on “The Katie Miller Podcast” earlier this week, Armstrong expressed concern over the exodus of tech entrepreneurs from California, spurred by the state’s unprecedented proposal to tax billionaires. His company, with its main office nestled in San Francisco, could soon join the migration.
Armstrong, whose net worth is pegged at $8.8 billion by Forbes, did not hold back his criticism. “I think it’s deeply un-American to seize people’s assets. It might be unconstitutional,” he declared, underlining a deep unease with policies targeting the affluent.
He acknowledged paying substantial taxes on his income and emphasized his willingness to continue doing so. However, Armstrong argued that an additional levy on wealth and assets veers California towards a “third-world” status, describing it as a perilous direction for governance.
“It’s against my values, I would say,” Armstrong added, highlighting his belief that such measures harm not only California but the nation as a whole. “So we’re considering any and all options basically at this point in terms of relocation,” he concluded, signaling openness to exploring every possibility beyond the Golden State.
The exec added that he wouldn’t be so opposed to additional taxes if there wasn’t so much fraud and waste in the government.
Armstrong told CNBC last week that he’s considering relocating his home out of California by the end of the year.
As of June, Coinbase – an American crypto exchange and wallet platform with venture capitalist powerhouse Marc Andreessen on its board – employed 4,300 workers internationally.
The company insists it is a remote-first operation – but last May it signed a lease for 150,000 square feet of San Francisco office space. That came just four years after it paid $25 million to break its previous office lease in the same city.
Coinbase also operates offices in New York, North Carolina, London, Singapore, Luxembourg, Dublin and Bangalore, India, as well as many remote positions, according to its website.
It is unclear how many people Coinbase employs in California. The company did not respond to The Post’s requests for comment.
Prop 40, California’s proposed billionaire tax, would impose a one-time 5% tax on the net worth of roughly 200 billionaires living in the Golden State.
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Mega-rich techies have pumped millions of dollars into a campaign to kill the tax. Google co-founder Sergey Brin has spent more than $100 million fighting the rule, which would cost him more than $13 billion personally.
Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg reportedly bought a $170 million mansion near Miami this year while venture capitalist Peter Thiel, ex-Uber CEO Travis Kalanick and Google co-founder Larry Page have fled the state.
Even California’s Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom has opposed the tax, warning it could hurt the state’s economy. Still, he’s backed a “national billionaires’ tax,” saying today’s office worker shouldn’t have to “shoulder a higher tax rate than the heiress.”
Californians are set to vote on the billionaire tax in November. If enacted, 90% of funding it raises would go toward healthcare services in the Golden State, while the remaining 10% would be spent on food assistance and education.
The ballot comes ahead of President Trump’s expected budget cuts next year. The state’s Medicaid program alone is predicted to lose up to $30 billion in federal funding.
Armstrong on Tuesday praised Trump for his friendly approach toward the cryptocurrency industry – while bashing former President Joe Biden and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.).
The Coinbase boss said Trump recognized in 2024 that there was a “massive voter base” of pro-crypto Americans.
“By the way, it wasn’t just like a good political opportunity,” Armstrong added. “He recognized that for the United States to stay relevant as a financial and technology hub, we have to embrace this … because if not, it’s all going to go offshore.”
“It’s not like you can uninvent crypto at this point, right? Like someone is going to do it in the world. You can’t just bury your head in the sand. So whether you like crypto or hate crypto, you got to put clear rules in the book so it can be built here in America.”
He accused the Biden administration of “an active campaign to try to curtail or even kill” the crypto industry, adding that Warren “had lots of influence with the financial regulators at that time.”
Last week, Armstrong attended a White House event alongside several other crypto CEOs where Trump pressured Congress to pass the Clarity Act, a crypto regulation bill, by the end of this year.
After Trump’s re-election win, Armstrong attended a Crypto Ball event held at the Mellon Auditorium, down the street from the White House, the weekend of Trump’s inauguration.
A few months later in March, Armstrong sat three seats from Trump at a White House summit for crypto industry leaders.