Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong: Ballooning government debt may make bitcoin the world's reserve currency
More government debt, more potential opportunities for the crypto bulls.
"One thing that is clear is that democracies around the world are having trouble getting deficit spending under control. If you study history ... once you decouple currency from hard commodities the inevitable story is they get overprinted and extended, right?" said Coinbase (COIN) CEO Brian Armstrong at the Coinbase Annual Summit in New York City on Thursday.
Armstrong said it's not a coincidence that bitcoin prices are hitting records as US debt reaches all-time highs.
"I want the US to remain the reserve currency status," he added. "But if the debt situation doesn't get fixed, I do think that eventually bitcoin will have to become the reserve currency for better or worse. It's not going to be the Chinese RMB because I think they have their own debt problems."
Armstrong joins Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk in warning about the ramifications of rising government debt. Musk is fresh off a dust-up with President Trump on the matter, slamming the debt projected to emanate from the administration's signature "big, beautiful" tax bill.
The crypto industry has seen a host of catalysts this year that have fed the bull narrative.
The Trump administration has moved to create a bitcoin strategic reserve (though its framework remains TBD). Companies such as GameStop (GME) and Strategy (MSTR) have been big buyers of bitcoin to diversify their cash holdings. Trump Media & Technology (DJT) recently announced a plan to raise $2.5 billion to buy bitcoin.
Stablecoin legislation is navigating its way through the government. And Circle's (CRCL) IPO was met with resounding enthusiasm.
Morningstar data on 294 crypto funds revealed they hauled in more than $7 billion in net inflows in May, the highest since December. Bitcoin funds attracted net $5.5 billion and ether funds a net $890 million in May.
Despite the positive news, Coinbase shares are only up 3% year to date — relatively in line with the S&P 500 (^GSPC).
The company's first quarter sales fell 24% from the prior year amid a slowdown in trading activity.
Analysts went on to warn of a more challenging transaction environment for the balance of the year.
"We still struggle to identify the next cryptocurrency catalyst that deeply engages retail and thus powers Coinbase earnings," JPMorgan analyst Ken Worthington said in a note.
Worthington rates Coinbase shares a Neutral with a $215 price target, suggesting 16% downside from current levels.
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