Serena Williams' VC firm quietly removed Coinbase from its website - Business Insider

Serena Williams is keen on investing in startups changing the world for the better.That strategy explains her earlier investment in Coinbase, a company on a mission to "bring economic freedom to people all over" through an app that allows casual consumers to buy and sell bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.But a battle at Coinbase on the role of employee activism at work may have her tiptoeing away from the startup.Serena Ventures, the investment firm started by Williams, has quietly removed Coinbase from the investments page on its website, even though it backed the cryptocurrency startup that's now entangled in controversy.In September, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong publicly posted a memo describing how the company should take a hands-off approach to politics and social causes and instead stay focused on the company mission. The post said she was focused on investing in startups that promote diversity."In 2014, (yes I know I can keep a secret) I launched Serena Ventures with the mission of giving opportunities to founders across an array of industries," Williams wrote on Instagram.