Coinbase co-founder and Paradigm managing partner Fred Ehrsam has increased his stake in the cryptocurrency exchange by buying $48.8 million in COIN shares, demonstrating steady confidence despite the stock’s checkered history.
Coinbase co-founder buys more shares
According to a US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing, Ehrsam, who is also a managing partner at Paradigm, bought $48.8 million worth of the coin in a series of trades this week.
The acquisition saw Ehrsam secure an additional 810,000 shares in Coinbase at prices ranging from $59.30 to $63.20 per share.
These recent purchases brought his total stake to 5.6 million shares, owned indirectly via Paradigm One LP, The Frederick Ernest Ehrsam III Living Trust, and Paradigm Fund LP.
Having IPOed on NASDAQ in April 2021, Coinbase stock It experienced great volatility, dropping about 85% from its opening price of $381 per share.
Despite this downward trajectory, the stock has shown resilience lately, with an 81% increase year-to-date.
Brian Armstrong sells
Ehrsam’s latest activity follows similar investments by Coinbase Insider and Shopify CEO Tobias Lutke earlier this year.
The Coinbase co-founder started his career as a cryptocurrency trader at Goldman Sachs before launching Coinbase with Brian Armstrong in 2012.
While Ehrsam was in buying mode, Armstrong was selling Coinbase stock to fund other endeavors, and he plans to give up 2% of his stake over the course of a year. Ehrsam relinquished his operational role at Coinbase in 2017 but remains actively involved as a director of the company.
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This latest investment marks nearly a year since Ehrsam first capitalized on a drop in Coinbase shares, acquiring more than 1.1 million shares for $76.8 million.
However, due to the stock’s recent performance, its overall investment in Coinbase is down nearly 9%.