Fred Ehrsam

Coinbase

2026-09-12 07:56:10

Coinbase co-founder Fred Ehrsam takes a Venezuela oilfield bet through Primavera

Coinbase co-founder Fred Ehrsam has moved beyond crypto and venture investing into Venezuelan oil, backing a project that sits at the intersection of energy policy, political risk and capital allocation. Through Primavera Infinita, a company he co-founded with Stanford graduate Manuel Iribarren, Ehrsam signed a production participation contract with Venezuela’s state oil company PDVSA in early September for the Budare-Elotes block. PDVSA’s long-term target is for the block to add more than 70,000 barrels a day. The move stands out against Ehrsam’s background. He worked as a foreign exchange trader at Goldman Sachs, co-founded Coinbase with Brian Armstrong in 2012, and later launched crypto investment firm Paradigm in 2018. His broader investment record also includes OpenAI, Anthropic and SpaceX. The report argues that the real bet is not only on oil production, but on how long the current political opening in Venezuela remains in place. The article also places Ehrsam’s move in a wider pattern across crypto wealth. BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes has disclosed exposure to oil, metals and defense names alongside BTC and ETH, while Tether has used profits and excess capital to build a portfolio spanning energy, agriculture, land and AI, including a controlling stake in Adecoagro. Together, those cases point to a shift: crypto capital is no longer focused only on bringing real-world assets on-chain, but is increasingly buying and operating physical assets directly.

1630

Coinbase

2026-09-11 02:21:38

WSJ: Coinbase co-founder Fred Ehrsam moved to Venezuela to pursue oil ambitions

The Wall Street Journal reported that Coinbase co-founder Fred Ehrsam spent months living in a luxury hotel in Caracas while building local connections as he pursued a long-shot plan to become one of Venezuela’s largest oil producers. Ehrsam, 38, had no prior experience in the oil and gas business, according to the report. He has nonetheless emerged as a potential participant in U.S. President Donald Trump’s push to revive Venezuela’s declining oil sector. Earlier this year, Primavera, a company Ehrsam co-founded, signed a production-sharing contract last week with Venezuela’s state oil giant Petróleos de Venezuela. The report links the crypto billionaire’s latest move to the country’s energy industry rather than the digital asset sector.

1100

Coinbase

2026-09-02 01:23:33

Coinbase Cofounder Fred Ehrsam Reportedly Seeks Control of Oil Fields in Venezuela

According to a Bloomberg report cited by Odaily, people in the crypto market may be exploring a move into the energy sector. Citing unnamed sources, the report says Fred Ehrsam, co-founder of Coinbase, is seeking control of at least three oil fields in Venezuela. Ehrsam is reportedly working through Primavera, an investment firm he co-founded. He has visited Caracas multiple times and met with U.S. officials to explore opportunities in oil, natural gas, fintech, and digital payments. The oil fields are operated by Alvorada Heavy Industries and sit in the Boca, Guico, and Guara blocks of Venezuela's Orinoco Belt. The report, first published by Bloomberg and later picked up by Odaily, says negotiations are ongoing and no final agreement has been reached. Additional terms have not been disclosed.

1290

Tim Draper

2026-07-16 01:37:16

Tim Draper says he passed on Coinbase early because mass retail crypto adoption looked too far off

Tim Draper said his decision not to back Coinbase at the outset was driven by his view of crypto adoption timing, not by any doubts about Brian Armstrong. The Draper Associates founder said he believed it would take much longer for retail users to adopt crypto, which led him to pass on the company in its earliest stage. He also said he had already invested in early Bitcoin company Coinlab at the time, another reason he did not invest in Coinbase initially. Draper added that his son, Adam Draper, disagreed with that call and wrote the first check to Brian Armstrong. Tim Draper later joined Coinbase’s next financing round. He said Coinbase, which was founded by Brian Armstrong and Fred Ehrsam and later listed on Nasdaq under the ticker COIN, has become one of the signature investments in Draper Associates Fund V. According to Draper, returns from Coinbase alone nearly doubled the overall size of that fund.

2030

Coinbase

2026-07-08 18:40:16

Coinbase Tests AI Agents Modeled After Former Employees Ehrsam and Srinivasan

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong announced the testing of AI agents in Slack and email, modeled after former employees Fred Ehrsam and Balaji Srinivasan. The move could set a precedent for integrating AI into corporate workflows, though accountability concerns remain.

560

Coinbase

2026-07-08 14:16:14

Coinbase Co-Founder Fred Ehrsam Unveils Brain Interface Device Nudge Zero

Fred Ehrsam has introduced Nudge Zero, the first product from his neuroscience startup Nudge. The non-invasive ultrasound neuromodulation device will initially target acute medical conditions, with longer-term ambitions in mental wellness and cognition.

740

Coinbase

2026-07-08 14:14:13

Coinbase Co-Founder Fred Ehrsam Reveals Nudge Zero, a Non-Invasive Brain Interface Device

Fred Ehrsam has unveiled Nudge Zero, the first product from his neuroscience startup Nudge. The non-invasive ultrasound neuromodulation device will initially target acute medical conditions, with a longer-term vision for consumer wellness applications.

690

Coinbase

2026-07-08 14:12:15

From Bitcoin to Brains: Coinbase Co-Founder Fred Ehrsam Unveils Nudge Zero Brain Interface

Fred Ehrsam, co-founder of Coinbase, has launched Nudge, a neuroscience startup that unveiled Nudge Zero, a non-invasive ultrasound neuromodulation device. The device aims to treat acute medical conditions like epilepsy and eventually enhance mood and cognition in healthy individuals.

700