Based on the reports from Coinbase, Jeff Horowitz the firm’s Chief compliance officer is set to part ways with the exchange
His exit is, however, not connected to the contentious and moot blog post by the company’s CEO Brian Armstrong that surfaced last week. It started when some employees asked the company to take a stance on social/political issues like the Black Lives Matter movement, which prompted the statement from the company’s executive, where Armstrong proclaimed an ‘apolitical’ non-activist stance. It is rumored this post led to about 5% of the company staff (60 employees) departing.
Prior to joining Coinbase, Horowitz had worked with several other firms, including Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers. At the time of his hire to Coinbase, Horwitz worked for Pershing, a BNY Mellon subsidiary specializing in brokerage services.
He was the first CCO at Coinbase – a position he has served since 2018. In the two years he has been with the company, Horowitz has accomplished several milestones. His effort was instrumental in shaping the exchange’s anti-money laundering (AML) guidelines. In addition, he helped the company achieve compliance with recommendations from the Financial Action Task Force.
Reports also detail that he played a significant role in landing JPMorgan as a banking partner for the exchange. A spokesperson from Coinbase corroborated reports on Horowitz’s exit, saying,
“Since joining the company in mid-2018, Jeff played an active role in helping to shape crypto and AML regulation with FATF, Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, Department of Treasury and regulators around the globe. We’re grateful for his service and wish him the best in the future. While we conduct a search for a new CCO, our Chief Legal Officer, Paul Grewal, will take over day-to-day responsibility for our compliance programs, with support from our compliance leads“.