The author is really missing the Big Picture here. Let's assume everything he says is true (it is not). At the end of the transaction, Coinbase took 1% in comparison to the average credit card processing cost for a retail business where
cards are swiped is roughly 1.95% - 2%. The average cost for
card-not-present businesses, such as online shops, is roughly 2.30% -
2.50%.

The consumer wins. Then there are the billions of people that are "un-bankable" in developing countries which is the REAL value proposition for Bitcoin. See the Nic Cary of Blockchain interview here: http://www.womensannexfoundation.org/#/digital-currency-for-digital-literacy/