Coinbase CEO Armstrong Pledges to Give Crypto Wealth to Charitable Causes

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has joined other super-wealthy individuals in pledging to donate much of his net-worth to charitable or other causes.

In a blog post on the website of The Giving Pledge – founded by Bill Gates and Warren Buffet to encourage the rich to donate their wealth to worthy causes – Armstrong said:

"Once a certain level of wealth is reached, there is little additional utility from spending more on yourself. ... Whether it's through improving education, creating a more level playing field, or increasing economic freedom, I'm interested in helping more people see their ideas come to fruition in the world. "

The CEO revealed that he had signed the pledge via a tweet on Thursday, saying: "I’m still early in my journey of discovering how to have the most impact via philanthropy. Today, I’m proud to join the Giving Pledge as part of this journey."

The Giving Pledge describes itself as "an effort to help address society’s most pressing problems by inviting the world’s wealthiest individuals and families to commit more than half of their wealth to philanthropy or charitable causes either during their lifetime or in their will."

So far the list has 187 super-rich pledgers, ranging from Elon Musk to Richard Branson, and Michael Bloomberg to David Rockefeller.

Armstrong

did not reveal in his post what, if any, proportion of his wealth he had committed to donate to causes, but he did say:

"This year, I started my first philanthropic effort, GiveCrypto.org, which makes direct cash transfers to people living in poverty. I'm excited about the potential for this organization to help people, but I’m still early on my journey of discovering how to have the most impact via philanthropy."

Brian Armstrong image via CoinDesk archive