The premier cryptocurrency startup, Coinbase, recently announced that it is opening an office in Portland, Oregon. In its blog post on the company’s official website, the VP of Operations and Tech at the San Francisco-based company, Tina Bhatnagar said they selected Portland after exploring different cities in the United States.
Coinbase appreciate blockchain community in Portland
The company decided to settle on the West Coast city because it already has a huge blockchain community and seemed best fit for its new office location. In her blog post, Bhatnagar stated that the company was inspired by the vast talent and open-source and presence of blockchain communities and appreciates the commitment of the Rose City to provide equal opportunities to everyone.
The post also mentions that blockchain and virtual currency talent is not only restricted to Silicon Valley and a pool of talented people exist all around the world. That is why Coinbase decided to open its office in a place away from Silicon Valley in the U.S. which boasts of large amounts of Coinbase customers. The company has acquired the office on a lease of seven years.
Coinbase to tap talent in Portland
As per the reports, Coinbase is planning to expand its base and hence is aiming to hire around 100 employees for its new office by December 2018. At present, the cryptocurrency exchange has over 20 million customers using platform for trading in cryptocurrencies.
Until now, it has managed to raise $217 million from big investors like DFJ, Andreessen Horowitz, BBVA, and others. The company has more than 400 employees and is expected to increase the number to 800 as a part of its expansion process. Recently Coinbase opened an office in Japan to allow the Japanese citizens and residents access to its services and products.
Apart from Portland, Coinbase also has offices located in Chicago and New York. According to Bhatnagar, “Our new Portland office will host a variety of business-related functions. We’re hiring right now for roles focused on customer support, finance, compliance, IT and HR, and we expect to add up to 100 new jobs to the local economy this year alone.”
