Bitstamp vs Coinbase: Founders, CEOs and History
Bitstamp was founded in 2011 by Nejc Kodrič, Damijan Merlak and is led by Jean-Baptiste Graftieaux. Coinbase was founded in 2012 by Brian Armstrong, Fred Ehrsam and is led by Brian Armstrong.
Company facts
Founders
Bitstamp
Nejc Kodrič
Nejc Kodrič co-founded Bitstamp with Damijan Merlak in Slovenia in August 2011 and served as CEO until October 2020.
Damijan Merlak
Damijan Merlak co-founded Bitstamp with Nejc Kodrič in Slovenia in 2011, when the pair set out to build a European bitcoin exchange funded by SEPA bank transfers.
Coinbase
Brian Armstrong
Brian Armstrong co-founded Coinbase in 2012 after reading the Bitcoin whitepaper and concluding that buying and storing bitcoin was too hard for ordinary people.
Fred Ehrsam
Fred Ehrsam co-founded Coinbase with Brian Armstrong in 2012 and helped shape its early trading, banking and fundraising work. He stepped back from operations in January 2017 but has remained a member of Coinbase's board.
CEOs and their tenures
Bitstamp
- Nejc Kodrič2011–2020
Co-founder & CEO
Built Bitstamp's compliance-first identity and kept it running through the industry's first major collapses; moved to a non-executive board role in October 2020.
Source - Julian Sawyer2020–2022
CEO
Brought banking experience as a co-founder and former COO of UK digital bank Starling, and had briefly led Gemini Europe before joining.
Source - Jean-Baptiste Graftieaux2022–present
Global CEO
Bitstamp's chief compliance officer from 2014 to 2016, he has kept licensing at the center of the company's strategy inside Robinhood.
Source
Coinbase
- Brian Armstrong2012–present
Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Co-founded Coinbase in 2012 and has led it as CEO ever since, taking it from a Y Combinator bitcoin wallet to a Nasdaq-listed, S&P 500 crypto exchange and infrastructure company.
Source - Fred Ehrsam2012–2017
Co-Founder
Co-founded Coinbase in 2012 and brought trading experience from Goldman Sachs. He stepped back from operations in 2017, remains a Coinbase director, and co-founded crypto investor Paradigm in 2018.
Source - Emilie Choi2018–present
President and Chief Operating Officer
Joined Coinbase in 2018 to lead corporate and business development after senior roles at LinkedIn, and now oversees operations as President and COO.
- Alesia Haas2018–present
Chief Financial Officer
CFO since 2018, previously CFO of Sculptor Capital (Och-Ziff) and OneWest Bank; led the 2021 direct listing and capital management.
- Paul Grewal2020–present
Chief Legal Officer
Former U.S. magistrate judge and Facebook deputy general counsel who led Coinbase's defense in the SEC lawsuit.
Timeline: Bitstamp and Coinbase side by side
2011Bitstamp
August: Nejc Kodrič and Damijan Merlak found Bitstamp in Slovenia as a European alternative to Mt. Gox.
2012Coinbase
Company Founded via Y Combinator
Brian Armstrong took Coinbase through Y Combinator's Summer 2012 batch and co-founded it with Fred Ehrsam. The service launched in October 2012, letting U.S. users buy bitcoin with a linked bank account, which few rivals offered at the time.
2013Bitstamp
April: Registration moves to the UK; from September, account holders must verify identity with passports and proof of address.
2013Coinbase
Andreessen Horowitz Leads $25M Series B
Andreessen Horowitz led a $25 million Series B at a valuation of approximately $143 million, the largest crypto venture investment to date and a signal that mainstream Silicon Valley was taking cryptocurrency seriously.
2014Bitstamp
Pantera Capital's roughly $10 million investment becomes public in March; a February DDoS attack pauses withdrawals for several days as Mt. Gox collapses.
2015Bitstamp
January: Hackers steal under 19,000 BTC (about $5 million) from the hot wallet; Bitstamp reopens about a week later.
2015Coinbase
Receives New York BitLicense
Coinbase was among the first companies granted New York's BitLicense, the state's crypto-specific regulatory framework. The approval reinforced its compliance-first positioning in the U.S. market.
2016Bitstamp
April: Luxembourg licenses Bitstamp as a payment institution, the first crypto exchange regulated this way in the EU; headquarters move to Luxembourg.
2017Coinbase
Surpasses 10 Million Users
Coinbase crossed 10 million users in 2017 as bitcoin approached $20,000, and its app reached the top of Apple's U.S. App Store in December 2017. Rapid growth also strained the platform, leading to outages and support backlogs.
2018Bitstamp
October: NXMH, the Belgian arm of South Korea's NXC, buys an 80% stake in an all-cash deal.
2018Coinbase
Launches Coinbase Custody for Institutions
Coinbase launched Coinbase Custody, a regulated institutional-grade custody product designed to meet the fiduciary requirements of hedge funds, family offices, and eventually public pension funds.
2019Bitstamp
April: New York's Department of Financial Services grants Bitstamp USA a BitLicense.
2020Bitstamp
October: Julian Sawyer becomes CEO; Kodrič moves to a non-executive board role.
2021Coinbase
Nasdaq Direct Listing
Coinbase listed on Nasdaq through a direct listing on April 14, 2021. Shares opened at $381 against a $250 reference price and the company ended its first day valued at about $86 billion, making it the first major U.S. crypto exchange to go public.
2021Coinbase
Reports Record $7.8B Revenue and $3.6B Net Income
Fiscal year 2021 produced Coinbase's strongest financial results in its history, with net revenue of $7.8 billion and net income of $3.6 billion driven by a retail crypto buying wave and Bitcoin prices reaching $69,000.
2022Bitstamp
May 9: Jean-Baptiste Graftieaux is appointed Global CEO after Sawyer's departure.
2022Coinbase
Navigates Industry Crisis; Workforce Reduction
The Terra/Luna and FTX collapses and a deep crypto bear market cut Coinbase's revenue from $7.84 billion in 2021 to about $3.19 billion in 2022.
2023Bitstamp
Ripple takes a minority stake; Bitstamp halts US trading in five tokens and ends US Ethereum staking for regulatory reasons.
2023Coinbase
Launches Base Layer 2 Blockchain
Coinbase opened Base, an Ethereum layer-2 network built on Optimism's OP Stack, to the public in August 2023.
2023Coinbase
SEC Files Lawsuit Against Coinbase
The SEC sued Coinbase in June 2023, alleging it operated as an unregistered exchange, broker and clearing agency and that its staking program was an unregistered security. Coinbase contested the case, and in February 2025 the SEC agreed to dismiss it.
2024Bitstamp
June: Robinhood agrees to buy Bitstamp for about $200 million in cash.
2024Coinbase
Bitcoin Spot ETFs Approved; Coinbase Named Primary Custodian
The SEC approved U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs in January 2024, and Coinbase was named custodian for eight of the eleven initial funds, including BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust.
2024Coinbase
Reports $6.56B Revenue and $2.58B Net Income
FY2024 total revenue was $6.56 billion, roughly double FY2023's $3.11 billion, with net income of about $2.58 billion. ETF-driven trading, higher crypto prices and stablecoin income all contributed.
2025Bitstamp
May: Luxembourg's CSSF grants a MiCA license. June 2: Robinhood closes the acquisition.
2025Coinbase
Joins the S&P 500
Coinbase was added to the S&P 500 in May 2025, replacing Discover Financial and becoming the first crypto-native company in the index.
2025Coinbase
Completes $2.9B Deribit Acquisition
Coinbase closed its acquisition of Deribit, the largest crypto options exchange, in August 2025 for about $2.9 billion in cash and stock. FY2025 revenue reached $7.18 billion and net income $1.26 billion.
2026Bitstamp
April: Perpetual futures launch for eligible EU customers. September 29: Robinhood says US crypto perpetuals will run through Robinhood Derivatives and Bitstamp.
2026Coinbase
Cuts 14% of Staff Amid Crypto Slump
After a $394 million net loss in Q1 2026, Coinbase announced in May 2026 that it would cut about 700 jobs, roughly 14% of its workforce, citing market volatility and AI-driven changes to how it works.
Acquisitions
Bitstamp
No verified acquisitions are listed.
Coinbase
- Deribit2025$2.9B
- Echo2025Undisclosed
- One River Digital Asset Management2023Undisclosed
- FairX2022Undisclosed
- Bison Trails2021Undisclosed
- Tagomi2020Undisclosed
Questions about Bitstamp vs Coinbase
Who is the CEO of Bitstamp and Coinbase Global?
Bitstamp is led by Jean-Baptiste Graftieaux and Coinbase Global is led by Brian Armstrong. Both serve as the top executive responsible for the company's strategy, operations, and financial performance.
When was Bitstamp founded vs Coinbase Global?
Bitstamp was founded in 2011 — 1 year before Coinbase Global, which was founded in 2012. Bitstamp's longer operating history gives it a deeper track record but also potentially more institutional inertia compared to the younger Coinbase Global.
How many employees does Bitstamp have compared to Coinbase Global?
Bitstamp employs approximately 650 people, while Coinbase Global employs approximately 4,951. Coinbase Global has the larger workforce at 4,951 employees, compared to Bitstamp's 650. A higher headcount does not necessarily imply greater efficiency — it often reflects differences in business model (e.g., manufacturing vs. software).
Where are Bitstamp and Coinbase Global headquartered?
Bitstamp is headquartered in Luxembourg and Coinbase Global is headquartered in United States. Their different home markets mean they may face different regulatory frameworks, tax regimes, and currency exposure.
Who founded Bitstamp and Coinbase Global?
Bitstamp was founded by Nejc Kodrič, Damijan Merlak. Coinbase Global was founded by Brian Armstrong, Fred Ehrsam.
Which company has a longer operating history — Bitstamp or Coinbase Global?
Bitstamp has been operating for approximately 15 years, making it the more established of the two companies. Coinbase Global has been in operation for around 14 years. A longer operating history often signals greater institutional resilience and brand recognition, though it can also mean slower adaptation to new market conditions.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Bitstamp vs Coinbase overview