At this juncture, it’s becoming increasingly evident that Coinbase’s failure to invest in Bitcoin and its inclination towards unfruitful buybacks is a significant misstep on its part.

Coinbase’s recent Q3 results fell short of expectations, and as a result, its shares plummeted by over 10%. In an attempt to regain trust, Coinbase rolled out a $1 billion share buyback, which unfortunately, didn’t do much to lift its sinking shares.

This situation underscores Coinbase’s misguided strategy of overlooking the most logical move of investing in Bitcoin.

Think about the potential impact if Coinbase dedicated this $1 billion towards augmenting its Bitcoin corporate reserves. This would not only send a powerful statement about its confidence in the future of Bitcoin and cryptocurrency but also demonstrate its vested interest in the same.

There’s no denying that Coinbase should be fully committed to capitalizing on Bitcoin’s potential. After all, they are the pioneers of this industry! Despite this, in 2024, Coinbase continues to bypass the successful Bitcoin reserve model, which is being effectively utilized by MicroStrategy.

While I may not be a financial wizard advising public companies on their strategies, it’s blatantly clear that crypto businesses need to take note.

MicroStrategy, which began investing in Bitcoin in 2020, has seen its market cap surpass that of Coinbase! Despite having just a tenth of Coinbase’s revenue, this software company has outperformed the original Bitcoin and crypto exchange, thanks to their Bitcoin investments.

For Coinbase, a company that has been in existence since 2012, when Bitcoin was valued at merely $5, this is undoubtedly a letdown. Just think of the levels they could have reached had they fully invested in BTC then. Nevertheless, it’s not too late.

It’s high time Coinbase stopped squandering resources on ineffective share buybacks and uninspiring projects. The answer is right in front of them – continue investing in Bitcoin!

This should be glaringly obvious by now. Any reputable Bitcoin and cryptocurrency company must include Bitcoin in its balance sheet. This not only aligns with the shareholders’ interests but also boosts the company’s credibility.

So, it’s high time Brian Armstrong, CEO of Coinbase, took action. Coinbase owes its existence to Bitcoin. It’s time they fully embraced it.

The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of BTC Inc or Bitcoin Magazine.