❓WHAT HAPPENED: Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong heaped praise on the Chinese Communist Party’s approach to controlling digital currency interest payments, sparking debate over stablecoin policies in the U.S.
👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong, U.S. banking lobby groups, and Chinese financial institutions.
📍WHEN & WHERE: Armstrong’s comments were made in January 2026, via X (formerly Twitter), amidst ongoing U.S. stablecoin regulation debates.
💬KEY QUOTE: “China has decided to pay interest on its own stablecoin, because it benefits ordinary people, and they recognize it as a competitive advantage.” – Brian Armstrong
🎯IMPACT: The remarks have caused concern that Armstrong is in favor of a central bank digital currency (CBDC), which is required for the government to pay inflation-causing interest rates on digital accounts.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has heaped praise on the Chinese Communist Party’s digital currency policies, suggesting the U.S. could learn from China in implementing what is effectively a central bank digital currency (CBDC). The argument over CBDCs continues to rage in the United States. Early in his second term, President Trump issued an executive order “to protect Americans from the risks of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs).”
This didn’t stop Armstrong from praising China’s decision to pay interest on its digital yuan, claiming it benefits ordinary people and serves as a competitive advantage. The replies were not as keen, with X users noting, “China’s version is a CBDC at best. Not a stablecoin. Although they looked and sounded the same but they are not.”
Another said, critically: “How to get people to use your dystopian CBDC: pay them interest. It’s textbook marketing, luring the mice with free cheese.”
The interest program is aimed at addressing low adoption rates of the digital yuan, with commercial banks subsidizing the effort rather than the central bank.
Armstrong’s surprising missive comes as Coinbase faces pressure from U.S. banking lobbyists over stablecoin yield-sharing programs. The GENIUS Act, passed in July 2025, allows platforms like Coinbase to offer stablecoin rewards, but banking groups are lobbying to eliminate this provision, arguing it threatens traditional banking deposits.
The Coinbase CEO recently told Bloomberg that Bitcoin could still hit $1,000,000 by 2030, despite the cryptocurrency’s price stabilizing around $87,500 per coin in recent months.
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