Coinbase CEO Confirms $25 Million Purchase of UpOnly NFT from Cobie
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has confirmed the purchase of the UpOnly NFT from well-known crypto trader Cobie for $25 million. The announcement was made on Tuesday, with Armstrong stating that “the rumors are true, we bought the NFT” and that “UpOnlyTV is coming back.” According to on-chain data, Coinbase paid Cobie $25 million USDC for the NFT, which originated from the podcast show “UpOnly” hosted by Cobie and Ledger.
The podcast, which invites top traders, project founders, and fund managers to discuss crypto trends, stalled about three years ago following the FTX collapse in 2022 and the crypto winter that followed. However, in May 2025, Cobie launched a challenge that if someone burned the NFT, the program would return for another season. The NFT was minted with the condition that when it is burned, the podcast will restart, and until then, Cobie would not be involved in any decisions regarding the podcast’s return.
UpOnly Podcast Returns with Eight Episodes
According to the NFT fine print, the holder of the token “can force Cobie and Ledger Status to perform 8 episodes of UpOnlyTV like monkeys.” The NFT description also reads, “We may call you an idiot for buying it or completely ignore you without mentioning your existence during our 8-episode season.” Following the purchase, Cobie joked that he is “too old for a crypto podcast” and that he will “be out here looking like Gary V.” He also mentioned that the podcast will be renamed “Unc Only” and that he will spend $25 million on plastic surgery.
Coinbase’s Purchase Amidst Technical Difficulties
The purchase of the UpOnly NFT by Coinbase came at a time when the company was suffering from major technical difficulties related to an outage in Amazon Web Services (AWS). Despite these challenges, the company has shown its commitment to the crypto community by investing in the popular podcast. The return of UpOnlyTV is expected to bring back a popular platform for discussing crypto trends and news.
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