When we started CoinFlip, we looked up to Coinbase. And in many ways we still do. But sticking our heads in the sand when discussions are challenging is not leadership, and it is not what our industry stands for.
Like Coinbase, CoinFlip is also a mission-focused company. But that mission has to go beyond the narrow focus of building excellent products, and consider who those products are for. Customers deserve it and society demands it. Buying and owning bitcoin is, and has always been, an inherently political act. Buying bitcoin is a vote for an inclusive financial system, a vote for human rights, and a vote for a better future. It is a vote against authoritarianism, a vote against legacy systems riddled with racism and discrimination, and a vote against an economic machine that has left too many people behind. Therefore, we cannot exist in this space without being political.
Jack Dorsey hit the nail on the head when he tweeted the following:
Feigning political neutrality erases these issues.
How can you complete your mission if you are not, at the very least, aware of the many problems that your customers face in their daily lives? You cannot. Plain & Simple.
Knowing this, CoinFlip understands that bitcoin means to stand for something, bitcoin means to put your money where your mouth is, and bitcoin means to fight for the communities you serve. As a company, our goal is not to be ‘woke’ or capitalize on social movements with crafted PR language. We just understand you can’t only look inward and ignore the world and still fulfill your ‘mission.’
At CoinFlip, we are absolutely going to keep engaging in politics because that is vital for the survival of our industry. In fact, it is vital that crypto businesses stay involved. When large corporations say they are going to be apolitical, they only mean that they are going to stay out of politics when their employees or other stakeholders ask to have a seat at the table. When it comes to entrenching the status quo, gatekeeping others out of the industry, or maintaining a system that doesn’t work, they will be the first ones to be political.
At CoinFlip, we realize we do not exist in a vacuum. We are part of something greater than ourselves. We punch up by combining our political power with other businesses, through groups like California’s Blockchain Advocacy Coalition and the Blockchain Association of New Jersey. We meet with legislators and regulators, testify at hearings, and help make sure policies that move forward bring us closer to a better future; a future with fewer intermediaries, better financial service options, and ultimate fairness about who is able to create and access these products. This is not beyond the scope of our work. It is our work.
We are not concerned that our employees might have diverse political viewpoints. We trust that they will both do their job and feel comfortable bringing their whole selves to work.
By ‘not taking a stance,’ companies make their position known loud and clear.
