Coinbase (COIN) CEO Brian Armstrong is hitting a wall, and he sounds a lot like the heads of America’s largest banks.
During meetings at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Armstrong reportedly approached several Wall Street leaders to discuss the crypto market structure bill moving through Congress, according to a Wall Street Journal (WSJ) report on Thursday.
The reception was frosty.
JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon told Armstrong, “You’re full of s–t,” according to people familiar with the exchange who spoke to the WSJ.
Bank of America’s Brian Moynihan attended a 30-minute meeting, but dismissed Armstrong’s position, saying, “If you want to be a bank, just be a bank.” Wells Fargo CEO Charlie Scharf declined to participate, saying there was “nothing to talk about.” Citigroup’s Jane Fraser gave it less than a minute.
The freeze comes as Armstrong has sharply opposed the Senate cryptocurrency bill. After reviewing a draft, he announced on X that Coinbase “cannot support the bill as written.” He later warned that traditional banks were pushing to protect their turf by targeting stablecoin rewards: recurring payments to users who hold tokens like USDC.
These rewards work like interest-bearing accounts, but typically offer higher returns, up to 3.5%. Banks argue they pose a threat to deposit-based models that fund loans and other basic services. If users switch en masse to stablecoins, the impact on local lending and smaller banks could be significant. Armstrong says the answer is simple: compete.
The legislation, known as the CLARITY Act, could determine who can offer these products and under what rules. Its outcome could reset the playing field between banks and crypto platforms.
Still, the line between the two industries is not as clear as the public confrontation suggests. Coinbase maintains partnerships with major banks including JPMorgan and Citi. That makes the current dispute less about total disruption and more about who sets the terms for the next phase of digital finance.
CoinDesk reached out to Coinbase, JPMorgan, Bank of America, Wells Fargo and Citigroup for comment, but none were received as of press time.
