Brian Armstrong’s Warning to Crypto Traders

Brian Armstrong has a message for crypto traders: “Insider trading of any kind is illegal. Do it, and you’ll go to prison.” The Coinbase CEO made this statement on X (formerly Twitter) today, addressing the meme coin frenzy that has taken over the market.

Brian stated he isn’t against meme coins but condemned those who take it too far—trading on inside information, rigging launches, and scamming retail investors.

His warning comes after Hayden Davis, the self-proclaimed “launch strategist” behind multiple political meme coins, acknowledged market manipulation, insider trading, and sniper wallets during an interview with Coffeezilla on Saturday. Hayden launched $LIBRA, the Argentinian meme token that wiped $4.6 billion from the market in hours.

“This is an insiders’ game. It’s an unregulated casino,” Hayden said, revealing how elites manipulate prices before dumping on retail investors. He even disclosed that some insiders had access to Trump’s token at a private dinner in Washington, D.C., prior to the public launch.

Hayden appeared indifferent to the damage caused, stating, “I thought some of these meme coins could turn into something real. But the reality is, it’s just a game.” He emphasized that those who know how to play win, while the rest lose.

Brian Says Meme Coins Still Deserve Recognition

Brian addressed the explosion of meme coins, recognizing that while some tokens may be “silly, offensive, or even fraudulent,” they are an inevitable aspect of crypto’s evolution.

“Meme coins have been with us since the beginning—Dogecoin is still one of the most popular coins. Even Bitcoin can be considered a memecoin (one could argue the U.S. dollar was, once it was disconnected from gold),” Brian explained. He likened meme coins to the early internet, where trivial animated GIFs eventually became part of something much bigger. “New technologies often look like toys but evolve into something much more powerful over time,” he added.

Coinbase supports free market capitalism. If a token is legal and customers wish to trade it, they should be allowed to make that choice. However, Brian made it clear: “Some meme coins have clearly gone too far lately, and insider trading is illegal. People should know that you will go to prison for this.”

Brian concluded with a reminder: “Don’t break the law! And don’t try to get rich quick. You should aim to get rich by contributing real, lasting value to society (or at least try—it’s not easy!).”