Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong stated in an interview on 10/22 that he believes entrepreneurs generally find the traditional fundraising process lengthy and painful. The company hopes to make 'pressing the fundraising button and having the funds immediately available' a reality through the acquisition of the on-chain fundraising platform Echo. He emphasized that this can make the fundraising process fairer and more transparent, while also expanding global entrepreneurial opportunities and further enhancing economic freedom.
Acquiring Echo aims to make on-chain fundraising more efficient and fair.
Armstrong first mentioned the goal of acquiring Echo, stating that it aims to bring fundraising on-chain, while making the entire fundraising process more efficient, fair, and transparent. He pointed out:
'Every entrepreneur feels that the fundraising process is very cumbersome, taking 2 to 3 months, and everything else has to be put on hold. You have to run countless presentations, be rejected 19 times, and succeed only once. Additionally, there are countless legal fees.'
He pointed out that Echo has helped over 2,000 to 3,000 projects raise over 200 million dollars, making it the leader in the on-chain fundraising field.
Community fundraising with high-quality screening is the Echo fundraising model.
Armstrong explained that Echo currently focuses on community fundraising, adopting a partial screening mechanism to avoid the situation where bad currency drives out good currency. He stated:
'Echo selects high-quality projects, allowing the community to participate directly. Coinbase currently holds approximately 500 billion dollars in assets for clients, and these users are all looking for good investment targets.'
Armstrong pointed out that Coinbase can connect 'high-quality entrepreneurs' and 'investors with funds' directly through Echo, creating a powerful network effect.
From registration to listing, achieving one-click services on the chain.
Then Armstrong also described the dream blueprint of 'on-chain entrepreneurship'. In the future, entrepreneurs will only need 'two people, one laptop, one dream' to complete the entire process on Coinbase:
Open a company account (possibly in DAO form).
By pressing the fundraising button, you can upload presentations and videos.
Receive payments in real-time through USDC smart contracts.
Funds are credited immediately, without waiting for wire transfers or using lawyers to run processes.
One-click activation of crypto payments, subsequent financing, and final listing.
He stated:
'One day, companies can go public directly on-chain. The entire entrepreneurial process to listing can be done on-chain, allowing for greater economic freedom and encouraging more entrepreneurs to take the plunge.'
Easing regulations to allow retail investors to participate in on-chain fundraising.
Armstrong stated that currently, these fundraisings are still primarily by crypto companies, but in the long run, all companies will raise funds this way because it is more efficient.
He pointed out that the current crowdfunding and qualified investor regulations of the US SEC have already provided a legal basis for some on-chain fundraising. Coinbase is working with the SEC to promote new regulations that allow retail investors to participate under protective mechanisms.
'The current rules protect retail investors, but they also prevent them from participating in early entrepreneurial opportunities. This is actually a bit unfair,' Armstrong emphasized.
Hope to provide more general people with opportunities to raise funds while ensuring investor protection.
The US SEC's innovation and openness support, making a fully on-chain IPO hopeful to become a reality.
The host asked: 'Has any company truly been listed on-chain?' Armstrong replied that currently, no traditional IPO has adopted this method, but it's only a matter of time.
'When Coinbase itself went public in 2021, I really wanted to try to allow part of the equity to be traded on-chain, but the SEC wasn't ready at that time.'
He revealed that the current attitude of the SEC is proactive and willing to innovate, and he anticipates that within the next two to three years, the first company to be listed simultaneously in traditional markets and on-chain will emerge. In the long run, a fully on-chain IPO is not impossible.
On-chain fundraising currencies are primarily stablecoins like USDC.
When it comes to the main currency for on-chain fundraising, Armstrong pointed out that most startups still use stablecoins like USDC for fundraising, making pricing and signing easier. However, he also mentioned that many companies convert part of their funds into BTC as a hedge against inflation.
'Like Coinbase itself, it also includes BTC in its balance sheet, which is gradually becoming a new norm in corporate financial management.'
After the fundraising is completed, entrepreneurs only need to 'click a button to sign the agreement', and the funds will automatically be credited through a smart contract.
Enabling entrepreneurial fundraising to be initiated with one click, allowing everyone to start a business freely.
At the end of the entire interview, Armstrong emphasized that future entrepreneurial fundraising will be as simple as pressing a button. He hopes that through the combination of Echo and Coinbase, 'on-chain fundraising' will become a new starting point for global entrepreneurship, ultimately realizing the vision of allowing more people to start businesses and raise funds freely.
(Coinbase acquired the private placement platform Echo for 375 million dollars, paving the way for ICO to directly reach exchange channels)
This article Coinbase CEO: Acquiring Echo is just the beginning, and in the future, traditional companies will also be able to do on-chain IPOs first appeared in Chain News ABMedia.
