Why Did Coinbase Burn This $25 Million NFT?

Earlier this year, crypto influencer and investor Cobie (real name Jordan Fish) created a non-fungible token (NFT) related to a defunct podcast he co-hosted with the pseudonymous Ledger during the 2021 crypto bull run and eventual collapse. Yesterday, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong announced that the crypto exchange had purchased this NFT, which cost $25 million (paid via the USDC stablecoin).

According to public statements made by Cobie around the time the NFT was created, the point of the…