Coinbase’s Armstrong Challenges French Central Banker at Davos Over Bitcoin’s Issuer Claim

Overview

• Speaking on a World Economic Forum tokenization panel, Brian Armstrong said Bitcoin is a decentralized protocol with no issuer and is more independent than central banks.
• Banque de France governor François Villeroy de Galhau said he places more trust in independent central banks with democratic mandates than in what he described as private issuers of Bitcoin.
• Armstrong argued Bitcoin’s fixed 21 million supply and lack of a money printer act as a check on government overspending and serve a role similar to gold in uncertain periods.
• He said he is meeting bank leaders and U.S. policymakers in Davos and indicated the White House has been cooperative toward a revised market‑structure bill that could surface within weeks.
• Coinbase withdrew support for the Senate bill on January 14 over limits on interest‑bearing products, and Senate debate was postponed, while fellow panelists said innovation and regulation can align.