Czech Central Bank Invests $18 Million in Coinbase Stock

The Czech Republic's central bank has taken a significant step into the realm of cryptocurrency by acquiring $18.1 million in Coinbase stock during the second quarter of this year. According to a recent 13F filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Czech National Bank (CNB) purchased 51,732 shares of Coinbase Global, which as of the end of June were valued at $18.1 million, and are currently worth around $20 million based on recent market prices. This acquisition marks the CNB's initial venture into Coinbase shares, as previous filings did not reveal any such holdings in the first quarter. The Czech Republic has shown growing openness towards cryptocurrencies. Earlier this year, the CNB approved a proposal to assess investments in various asset classes, including bitcoin. CNB Governor Aleš Michl highlighted the central bank's goal to diversify its reserve portfolio. In a discussion with the Financial Times, he mentioned that the CNB could potentially allocate up to 5% of its €140 billion ($163.5 billion) reserves towards bitcoin, subject to board approval. As for Coinbase’s stock performance, it closed down by 0.49% at $387.06 on Friday, according to Yahoo Finance. The stock has increased by 55.88% year-to-date.