US President Donald Trump reportedly held a private meeting with Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong shortly before criticizing banks for delaying progress on a key market structure bill.

According to a report published Tuesday by Politico, Trump met with Armstrong following a visit to the White House by a group of Coinbase representatives. While the exact details of the meeting were not disclosed, Trump later posted on his Truth Social platform calling for swift action on cryptocurrency legislation, stating that “the US needs to get Market Structure done, ASAP.” “The banks are hitting record profits, and we are not going to allow them to undermine our powerful Crypto Agenda [...],” Trump said in the post.

The reported meeting came more than a month after Armstrong publicly stated that Coinbase could not support the proposed market structure bill “as written.” At the time, he cited “draft amendments that would kill rewards on stablecoins, allowing banks to ban their competition.” Following those concerns, Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott postponed a markup session for the legislation, and as of Wednesday no new schedule had been announced.

Disagreement centers on stablecoin rewards

One of the central points of disagreement between many crypto firms and banking groups involves how the bill treats stablecoin rewards. Armstrong and several industry participants have expressed opposition to provisions that would prohibit yield generation on stablecoins, arguing that such measures could restrict competition.

Since the legislative markup was delayed, the White House has reportedly hosted three separate meetings involving representatives from both the crypto industry and the banking sector to discuss the issue.

At the time of publication, requests for comment sent to Coinbase, the White House and the American Banking Association had not received responses. In a separate statement reacting to Trump’s remarks, Crypto Council for Innovation CEO Ji Hun Kim emphasized the broader importance of the legislation.

"American leadership in digital assets is a national priority and it remains imperative that the US leads. CCI is focused on ensuring that market structure legislation passes and is enacted as soon as possible. We remain committed to working constructively on a path forward on stablecoin rewards."

Coinbase maintains visible presence in Washington

Coinbase and its leadership have maintained frequent contact with members of the administration since Trump’s victory in the 2024 presidential election. Although the White House has its own crypto policy advisers, Armstrong has appeared alongside administration officials on several occasions.

The Coinbase CEO reportedly attended inauguration events in January 2025 with other figures from the digital asset industry. The exchange also contributed to the “nonpartisan initiative” America250, which organized a military parade in Washington, DC in July 2025.

During ongoing congressional discussions about the market structure bill, Armstrong has also remained active in Washington, frequently speaking with lawmakers and media outlets from Capitol Hill. In February, he appeared alongside Ohio Senator Bernie Moreno at a crypto-focused forum held at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Florida. The event was hosted by World Liberty Financial, a company supported by the president and his sons.

Sources:

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/crypto-council-for-innovation_president-trump-said-the-genius-act-is-being-activity-7434733337447088128-lnfI/

https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2026/03/03/congress/trump-met-with-coinbase-ceo-before-bashing-banks-over-crypto-bill-00811277

https://cointelegraph.com/news/donald-trump-coinbase-brian-armstrong-crypto-bill