Bitcoin soars: Are crypto firms members clubs again?
Typically, the price of crypto and digital assets has tended to ebb and flow in the same direction as the traditional financial markets, much to the chagrin of diehard advocates that want it to operate independently.
However, as markets have taken a downturn and the TradFi doom has proliferated, the largest cryptocurrency is soaring. The price of Bitcoin is up 10% in the past five days and 32% from its lows of March 10th, breaking the $28k mark and reaching its highest value since last June.
Crypto firms will be welcoming this with open arms. And it appears as though they are (tentatively) beginning to build for the future. If you're not in crypto already, though, don't expect to be a part of it.
“Activity in crypto has picked up markedly, but we’re still below the highs of last summer," says Mike Burton, a former Goldman Sachs FX sales MD and crypto headhunter for Fondos Consultants. However, the moves are “more crypto to crypto” than anything else.
Senior hiring is now the focus at the major crypto firms. "Big market making sales and trading firms have started to look again at filling those key slots going forward," says Burton. Firms are recruiting for "C-Suite sales, trading and marketing across exchanges. The odd CTO role. A fair handful of quite senior roles.”
Crypto engineering recruitment has taken the biggest hit, however. While Burton says it "was the vast majority in terms of numbers of roles before," it has since "really declined." At smaller firms however, technical talent is still sought after and paid well.
Big firms want crypto alumni only
At the peak of the last cycle a great many traditional finance professionals jumped ship. Now, they'll have a much harder time doing so.
“Before FTX employers were prepared to take much more of a chance on people coming from TradFi," says Burton. "Nowadays the role has to be much more similar to the experience base of the candidates; so from another crypto firm”.
That doesn't mean working for a big bank or hedge fund can't earn you kudos. Burton says "the value of a TradFi career is still sought after. "However, he adds that firms "looking for someone to design trading algorithms" for example are most likely to hire people who've done it in "TradFi and crypto.”"
It's not plain sailing just yet for crypto, however. Burton says he is "still worried about FTX" and that "we don't know which shoe is going to drop next."
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