Before Trump Lashed Out at Banks, Coinbase CEO Had Just Secretly Met with Him

Author: CoinDesk

Translation & Editing: TechFlow

TechFlow Intro: CoinDesk has exclusively confirmed a critical timeline: Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong met privately with Donald Trump before Trump publicly criticized banks on Truth Social for obstructing pro-crypto legislation.

This connection directly reveals the lobbying pathway behind Trump’s public statements and clarifies the legislative tug-of-war between the crypto industry and the banking sector.

Full Text Below:

Key Points:

• Prior to publicly accusing banks of undermining the pro-crypto GENIUS Act and calling for advancement of the CLARITY Act, Trump held a private meeting with Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong.
• The meeting was first reported by Politico and occurred shortly before Trump posted on Truth Social stating that banks “need to make a good deal with the crypto industry” to push forward stalled digital asset legislation on Capitol Hill.
• The crypto market structure bill is deadlocked because banks warn that interest-bearing stablecoins could erode deposits and lending capacity, while crypto firms argue it is reasonable for the GENIUS Act to allow consumers to earn rewards on stablecoin holdings.

CoinDesk has confirmed that U.S. President Donald Trump held a closed-door meeting with Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong—shortly after which Trump posted on Truth Social accusing banks of attempting to derail the GENIUS Act.

“The U.S. needs to complete market structure legislation as soon as possible. Americans should earn more from their own money,” Trump wrote in his Tuesday post. “Major banks are posting record profits, and we will not allow them to sabotage our strong crypto agenda—if we fail to advance the CLARITY Act, all of this will flow to China and other countries.”

Politico first reported the Armstrong-Trump meeting. Following the meeting, Trump publicly backed Coinbase’s position in its “ongoing lobbying battle with banks”—a clash that has stalled a major crypto bill.

The outlet cited “two sources familiar with the matter,” who spoke anonymously about the closed-door event. It also noted that the specific topics discussed during the meeting remain unclear.

Nonetheless, the report reiterated that “the meeting took place shortly before Trump posted on social media saying banks ‘need to make a good deal with the crypto industry’”—a pivotal moment aimed at advancing digital asset legislation stalled on Capitol Hill.

Neither the White House nor Coinbase responded to CoinDesk’s request for comment.

This market structure bill has remained unresolved since the Senate Banking Committee’s originally scheduled debate and vote. The core impasse centers on banks’ concern that stablecoin interest rates could undermine bank deposits—and thus their lending capacity—while crypto exchanges maintain that users should be entitled to earn rewards on stablecoin holdings, a provision explicitly permitted under the GENIUS Act.

JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon stated on Tuesday that stablecoin issuers paying interest on customer deposit balances should be regulated like banks. Patrick Witte, Executive Director of the President’s Digital Assets Advisory Committee, countered that “what truly warrants bank-like regulation is not the act of paying yield on balances itself, but rather the lending or rehypothecation of the underlying U.S. dollars comprising those balances.” Witte added that the GENIUS Act “explicitly prohibits stablecoin issuers from engaging in the latter activity. Stablecoins ≠ deposits.”

Crypto-related stocks surged sharply on Wednesday alongside a broad rebound in crypto markets, with COIN climbing above $200—the highest price since late January.