As one of the foremost whales in the crypto space, Brian Armstrong has utilized this opportunity to the fullest. The American crypto guru co-founded Coinbase—the largest cryptocurrency exchange platform in America today. But it doesn’t stop there! Brian Armstrong is equally a big name in the stock market and several other ventures, making cool dollar bills for himself and garnering up to $10.7 billion net worth.
Brian Armstrong is a successful business executive, entrepreneur, crypto whiz, and, most of all, a billionaire. At Coinbase, he received media attention for his policy of ensuring political neutrality in the workplace.
Do you still think the cryptocurrency sector doesn’t produce the world’s greats? Follow me down this enlightening and motivational Brian Armstrong story. Here, we will learn about the life, career workings, and net worth of Brian Armstrong, tracing how he achieved so much to become a renowned figure in the crypto world.
Brian Armstrong’s Early Life and Background
Brian Armstrong (@brian_armstrong) was born in San Jose, California, on January 25, 1983. For Armstrong, cleverness runs in the family because both of his parents were certified engineers at the time he was born. He attended Bellarmine College Preparatory – a Catholic, all-male, private high school.
In 2005, he bagged a dual bachelor’s degree in economics and computer science from Rice University, Texas. Brian Armstrong’s knowledge of computers and economics later proved instrumental to his technical brilliance and understanding of the crypto market.
Armstrong’s eye for money opened while he was studying at Rice University. He started a business (UniversityTutor.com) where he would match students with tutors for a small amount of money. After graduating, Brian spent one year in Buenos Aires working for an education company for a meager, barely sustainable salary.
Not much is known about Brian Armstrong’s personal life, although there were rumors of him dating Raline Shah, an Indonesian actress. Some websites claim that they got married years ago, but there is no concrete evidence to support this.
What is Brian Armstrong’s Net Worth in 2024?
The topic of Brian Armstrong’s net worth is a controversial one as it has assumed both high and low fluctuating figures in recent years. However, at the time of writing, Brian Armstrong’s net worth is projected to be around $10.7 billion (according to Forbes). This astounding amount ranks him at #180 in the Forbes list of billionaires in 2024!
Most of Brian Armstrong’s net worth emanates from his CEO position at Coinbase. The American crypto entrepreneur has the highest stake in the company, which is worth millions of USDT. Specifically, Armstrong owns about a 19% stake at Coinbase.
Brian Armstrong’s net worth reached its (former) peak, around $6.7 billion, in 2021, when the crypto market was booming along with Coinbase. However, his valuation plummeted to around $2.5 billion the following year due to allegations thrown at Coinbase. The company was accused of failing to provide adequate security measures to prevent money laundering on its exchange.
The company faced its lowest days between 2022 and 2023, reducing the value of its individual shares to below $40. However, starting from late 2023, the company seems to have overcome its darkest days, with its value skyrocketing to new heights by mid-2024. Likewise, Brian Armstrong’s net worth skied to about $10.7 billion this year!
Brian Armstrong’s Career Journey
The major facets of Brian Armstrong’s Career began in 2008 when he started working as a software developer at IBM. He then worked for Deloitte & Touche as a consultant in the risk management division. In 2011, Brian Armstrong started working at AirBnB as a software engineer, working on payment systems.
It was at AirBnB that he started revealing how much of a problem solver he was. For instance, during his tenure at the company, he noticed the challenges of sending money to South American regions. This prompted him to write codes in Ruby and JavaScript to solve the problem by buying and storing cryptocurrencies.
In 2010, prior to his cameo at AirBnB, Armstrong came across a Bitcoin whitepaper published under the alias Satoshi Nakamoto. This was the major eye-opener for Brian Armstrong about crypto potentials. He then started to write code to buy and store tokens while working at AirBnB.
However, a golden opportunity presented itself for Brian Armstrong in 2012. That year, he entered the Y Combinator startup accelerator and received a $150,000 investment, which he used to fund Coinbase. Knowing he couldn’t do it alone, Brian Armstrong searched for a co-founder for Coinbase. He later found his perfect business partner, Fred Erhsam, on Reddit after his “vacancy” article went viral in Hacker News.
Coinbase: The Major Source Of Brian Armstrong’s Net Worth
The former AirBnB software engineer “Brian Armstrong” and his subreddit partner, Fred Erhsam, launched Coinbase in 2012. The company was launched out of a two-bedroom shared apartment in San Francisco. Coinbase was a platform that allowed crypto enthusiasts to exchange bitcoins and other digital currencies seamlessly. Brian Armstrong was the first president and CEO of the company, owning about 19% stake in the company, roughly $39 million shares.
Since its launch, Coinbase has provided both co-founders millions of dollars yearly, thanks to its increasing market valuation. In 2013, for example, Coinbase raised about $25 million in a Series B funding round that included Union Square Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, and Queensbridge Venture Partners. The Series B funding round valued Coinbase around $140 million but the company hit $8.1 billion just five years later!
Coinbase lost about 5% of its workers in late 2020 after Armstrong released a blog post discouraging employee activism and political discussions in the workplace. He even offered severance packages to his employees who weren’t comfortable with the new policy. As a result, some workers left their desks, but the company remains a giant in the world of crypto exchange today.
Coinbase publicly debuted on the NASDAQ in the afternoon of April 14, 2021. Prior to this, the expected price per share was $250 but Coinbase ended up debuting at $381/share. This value raised the company’s market cap from $65 billion before the public debut to around $100 billion in April 2021. It’s no wonder, therefore, why Brian Armstrong’s net worth skyrocketed to over $6 billion that year. Consequently, Forbes listed Armstrong as #60th in the Forbes 400 richest people in America 2021.
Currently, Brian Armstrong has an estimated $10.7 billion net worth, a Forbes self-made score of 8/10, and he owes gratitude to Coinbase’s success. Despite facing critical blows between 2022 and 2023, the company is back, reclaiming its spot as America’s largest crypto exchange platform!
What are the Other Contributors to Brian Armstrong’s Net Worth?
Brian Armstrong’s influence and wealth stream span beyond Coinbase alone. He has a blooming career as an investor and has been involved in several philanthropic activities over the years. In the same vein, Brian Armstrong has also established several other companies that are, to a large extent, successful – and instrumental to his $10.7 billion wealth value. Check out some of Brian Armstrong’s additional ventures that, directly or indirectly, made him a billionaire.
ResearchHub
Brian Armstrong self-funded and co-founded the popular scientific research website ResearchHub in 2020. The website was designed to make research papers and educational articles on diverse topics accessible to everyone. ResearchHub was modeled on the GitHub code repository and is free for all users.
NewLimit
NewLimit was launched in 2021 by co-founders Brian Armstrong and Blake Byers (a renowned venture capitalist). NewLimit is a biotechnological company that aims to increase human health span by targeting the biology of aging. The company is known for its expertise and primary focus on epigenetic reprogramming. In May 2023, NewLimit accrued over $40 million in a Series A investment funding round.
Philanthropy
Despite his carefree attitude towards political issues, Brian Armstrong has been involved in several philanthropic activities, some of which have political affiliations. For instance, following the brutal murder of George Floyd, Armstrong reportedly fuelled and supported the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movements across the country. He is also open about his hatred against racism and police brutality, funding special anti-racism movements occasionally.
Also, in 2018, Brian Armstrong signed The Giving Pledge, indicating his intentions to donate a significant part of his fortune to charity. He also encourages other prominent crypto giants to give a part of their wealth to fund the growth of crypto for generations to come. To aid this invitation to donate, Brian Armstrong designed and founded GiveCrypto.org—a platform that makes it easier for everyone to donate to crypto.
Books & Documentary Involving Brian Armstrong
Brian Armstrong is a regular feature in several crypto-related books and documentaries thanks to his popularity and prominence in the crypto community. He appeared in the 2014 American documentary “The Rise and Rise of Bitcoin.” Likewise, he was featured in the 2020 nonfiction book, “Kings of Crypto: One Startup’s Quest to Take Cryptocurrency Out of Silicon Valley and Onto Wall Street.”
Emmy-winner Greg Kohs also directed a popular documentary, “COIN: A Founder’s Story,” of which Brian Armstrong and Coinbase were the bone of contention.
Conclusion
These frequent smart thinking, innovations, determination, and his ability to capitalize on opportunities yielded Brian Armstrong’s astounding net worth of $10.7 billion. Today, Armstrong is celebrated in the crypto community as one of the founding fathers who improved our chances of getting seamless crypto trading experiences.
