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Coinbase lays off around 1,100 employees

coindesk.com

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Re: Coinbase lays off around 1,100 employees

#781

Post by redorb »

akoncius wrote: post #681
stevenjgarner wrote: post #666

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Given that successful technologies have mostly been developed by corporations which have appreciated in value from their innovation, do you favor a Luddite lifestyle, eschewing technology? Or do you think investors would rush to put their capital at risk for no return? I believe the technologies on which we are enjoying this conversation would never have emerged if a wealth tax hit silicon valley after WW II.

internet was created by two universities, not private companies. and usually universities are funded by governments. private companies ruined internet actually.

Private companies ruined the internet by creating millions of jobs?

Re: Coinbase lays off around 1,100 employees

#782

Post by Zaskoda »

azpa wrote: post #766

This prognosis was the final straw caused me to exit the market as it sounded like Brian wasn’t expecting a recovery in any reasonable time period. Furthermore, I felt that other asset classes were overvalued when I got into crypto and I hardly think that’s it’s currently the same. It also turned out to not be the inflation hedge I originally assumed it would be. Part of my current assertion is that cryptos value is…

> It also turned out to not be the inflation hedge I originally assumed it would be.

This is a common misconception. I've never understood why people have had such unrealistic expectations of Bitcoin's price performance during the initial phase of inflation.

There are two types of people who buy Bitcoin: one that holds it for the long term and the other that treats it as a speculative investment, perhaps even swing trading with it. Access to cheap borrowing and a dramatic increase in the money supply has overpriced Bitcoin as speculators buy in. It has to correct.

Now, as the money supply begins to shrink and access to cheap debt comes to an end, speculators are forced out of the market. They need cash to cover their debts. Thus, as all markets begin to fall, Bitcoin is going to fall with them. A lot of us have always expected this to be the case. Eventually, once the speculators are washed out, we'll hit a floor. We might be there already. We might have a way to go. But there will be a floor.

The correction across all markets we've seen so far is just a market adjustment back to reality. Meanwhile, the debt bubble hasn't really started to "pop" just yet. We've seen record levels of debt lately, corporate debt in particular. Now we will begin to see over-leveraged companies begin defaulting on their debt as they head into bankruptcy. This will be the real crash. The full scope of this is unknowable. But there's reason to believe it will be historic.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin has no debt. Bitcoin doesn't care. Bitcoin will just keep on being Bitcoin. At some point, people will begin to notice that Bitcoin is the only thing that's not falling anymore. This will be the moment of change.

Re: Coinbase lays off around 1,100 employees

#783

Post by UncleMeat »

Aeolun wrote: post #649
Johnny555 wrote: post #627

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Isn't that the same? If my house is worth $1M in 2022, I pay tax on that $1M of value. If it goes down in value to $500K in 2023 (and is reassessed), I'd pay tax on $500K value in 2023. If I own $1B of AMZN in 2022, I'd pay wealth tax on my $1B holdings in 2022, if the market tanks and AMZN is worth $50M in 2023, then I'd pay the wealth tax on $50M in 2023. Just as with property taxes, a wealth tax is generally annua…

It feels weird I’d have to pay anyone just for owning something. Besides, how would you price private companies? Are those just going to be free?

It only feels weird because there is a concerted effort to make you feel that way. It is absolutely identical to property taxes on homes, but that doesn't make people feel icky in the same manner.

Re: Coinbase lays off around 1,100 employees

#784

Post by UncleMeat »

rurp wrote: post #646
stevenjgarner wrote: post #604

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A wealth tax implies a tax on unrealized appreciated assets, which is beyond bizarre IMHO. So you buy a house for $500k somewhere. It surges in value to $1.2 million. You therefore have an unrealized capital gain of $700k. You are NEVER going to get that money until you sell it, and when you do you are going to pay a whopping amount of capital gain tax. But a wealth tax implies you pay that capital gain tax now. Okay…

All of the serious wealth tax proposals I've seen have a rather high floor. A more practical hypothetical would be a person with 10m other assets worrying being taxed on the gains from their 5th vacation home.

This hasn't stopped people from complaining about things. My grandparents are constantly complaining about how the inheritance tax is going to prevent them from willing their timeshares to the family. Even if we show them the IRS website they don't believe us when we say it doesn't kick in below $12m.

Re: Coinbase lays off around 1,100 employees

#785

Post by Johnny555 »

imdsm wrote: post #665
Aeolun wrote: post #643

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’m a firm believer in a maximum of like 50% tax on income. Anything more just feels like a punishment for working.

Absolutely. Let's say I earn over the threshold, and I can now either choose to continue to try and innovate and add value to society, or retire to a private island and just become a carbon contributor, I mean, why work myself into the ground if I can no longer benefit? Most people have assets not liquidity too, so it's like saying, if you own too much, you have to stop. Well, what if Elon stopped and we reverted bac…

I mean, why work myself into the ground if I can no longer benefit?

That's a good question for the current situation -- why does Bezos still go to work? Once you have $100B, what tangible benefit do you get from more? Surely he's not doing it for the money, another $1B, or even $100B isn't going to change his lifestyle.

Re: Coinbase lays off around 1,100 employees

#786

Post by [deleted] »

Johnny555 wrote: post #45
sillysaurusx wrote: post #15

I think if employees feel slighted by being fired, they're fooling themselves. The best mindset is that you could be gone tomorrow. It gives you clarity and purpose. It also happens to be the truth. Coinbase was also extremely generous with severance. 12 weeks plus two for every one year at the company, I think. I've had the experience of being let go without notice and without severance. Devs seem a little more griz…

People keep pointing to Armstrong's $110M house like it's some sort of injustice. If you think billionaires should exist at all, then that's one of the least-bad injustices imaginable Ok, I'll admit it, billionaires should not exist at all, there should be a heavy wealth tax that makes it hard to become a billionaire. Will a CEO work less hard if he (and his peers) can only ever gain $100M in net worth before a wealt…

[deleted]

Re: Coinbase lays off around 1,100 employees

#787

Post by akira2501 »

alx__ wrote: post #584
Johnny555 wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People keep pointing to Armstrong's $110M house like it's some sort of injustice. If you think billionaires should exist at all, then that's one of the least-bad injustices imaginable Ok, I'll admit it, billionaires should not exist at all, there should be a heavy wealth tax that makes it hard to become a billionaire. Will a CEO work less hard if he (and his peers) can only ever gain $100M in net worth before a wealt…

Christ on a skateboard!? All the temporarily displaced billionaires in this thread are something else. If you require more than 100M in net worth to be "motivated" to work. There's a larger problem with you. Being a CEO/leader doesn't require some skill set that's given to you from some mythical watery being just because you're special.

An odd way to attack the problem would be to demean the personal liberties of someone else based on nothing other than your own personal feelings. I don't see how either of these lines of argument achieve any useful or realistic end state.

It's a topic almost perfectly designed for a useless shouting match.

Meanwhile. In the 1950's, citizens in the US were expected to pay around 50% of the cost of running the government. Corporations paid 25% of the share and the rest were import and other use taxes.

Today, citizens are expected to pay 85%. Corporations pay a mere 7%, and they enjoy reductions in the other tax categories more readily than citizens and consumers do.

The elite business class billionaire CEO is just a symptom of this problem, and a fraction of the overall class anyways. Tiger Woods just joined the three comma club recently.. what was his original sin?

Re: Coinbase lays off around 1,100 employees

#788

Post by xvedejas »

Cerium wrote: post #682
xvedejas wrote: post #634

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Aren't those classes of stock with voting power worth a lot more? I'm not sure how you'd possibly avoid being rich on paper if you have a majority voting power for Google.

Not necessarily, for example Facebook supervoting shares were setup to convert to normal shares if transfered, making them only more valuable to the original holder.

Okay, interesting. I'm guessing those people typically had many normal shares too, right? Otherwise if they're given a fairly small financial stake, and have no skin in the game -- I'm guessing that most investors wouldn't like that?

Re: Coinbase lays off around 1,100 employees

#789

Post by x3n0ph3n3 »

734129837261 wrote: post #662
raesene9 wrote: post #16

I see they cut off access for staff before telling them. not an atypical move, but I wonder if they were actually able to revoke all access, given there's systems like Kubernetes where some auth. types can't be revoked once granted.

Most people will have worked on laptops that have the software installed that allows them to completely brick the device. It just makes me wonder what they'll be doing with 1000+ laptops and other devices. Do they expect people to send it back? Probably yes. I'd personally just declare: "I have low money and I had to fire your laptop service, thanks for the work of getting it to me, I'll be keeping it now." I mean, t…

> I'd personally just declare: "I have low money and I had to fire your laptop service, thanks for the work of getting it to me, I'll be keeping it now."

I think you could then expect a knock on your door from a couple of police officers. [1]

1. https://www.reddit.com/r/bestoflegaladvice/comments/v9acuq/l...

Re: Coinbase lays off around 1,100 employees

#790

Post by vkou »

wly_cdgr wrote: post #727
cwkoss wrote: post #591

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If Coinbase is operating USDC as full reserve, as they have claimed, is there any risk from it? Seems like there would only be risk if they lied about how they are running it.

Even if that's so, saying it's plausible they lied would be putting it kindly

Unlike the other fly-by-night stablecoin shops, Coinbase's leadership, and their wealth is fully within reach of Uncle Sam's prosecutors.

I doubt USDC is undercollateralized. I don't doubt that there are situations where it could depeg, but I don't think anyone ought to be going to jail if it does.

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