Coinbase has announced it is closing its San Francisco office, the company’s former headquarters, in an effort to be fully decentralized.
In late February, the company announced it was transitioning to a decentralized company, going remote first. As part of the move, it relegated its existing headquarters in San Francisco to just a regular office, going HQ-free.
Coinbase is now taking the next step, with plans to close its San Francisco office altogether. Although it no longer serves as the company’s HQ, there was concern that its very existence would put undo emphasis on it and take away from the company’s decentralization efforts.
Coinbase is committed to being remote first. We announced we no longer have an HQ and as a next step, we’re closing our SF office (our former HQ) in 2022.
— Coinbase News (@CoinbaseNews) May 5, 2021
Closing our SF office is an important step in ensuring no office becomes an unofficial HQ and will mean career outcomes are based on capability and output rather than location. Instead, we will offer a network of smaller offices for our employees to work from if they choose to.
— Coinbase News (@CoinbaseNews) May 5, 2021
While many companies have transitioned to permanent remote work, Coinbase is certainly charting a unique path with its commitment to decentralized remote work.