Coinbase’s CEO Brian Armstrong and board members are among the defendants in a stockholder derivative complaint accusing them of insider trading during the company’s public listing. The complaint, filed by Coinbase shareholder Adam Grabski, alleges that the defendants sold $2.9 billion worth of shares despite having inside information about the company’s health that negatively impacted the share price, resulting in a loss of over $1 billion to investors.
The suit claims breach of fiduciary duty and unjust enrichment and seeks damages, the return of ill-gotten gains, and reimbursement of expenses. Coinbase responded to the allegations, calling the claims “meritless.” The lawsuit comes on the same day as a class-action suit regarding alleged violations of Illinois privacy laws in its Know Your Customer procedure.