The crypto markets are going through a rough phase. Bitcoin has crashed more than 70% in 8 months. Amidst the crash, several companies are laying off their employees, desperately trying to save cash.
However, not all companies are facing the hammer of fate. Bit.com, the second-largest crypto options exchange, seeks to double its workforce amidst layoffs. But why?
Let’s explore.
The Crypto Recession
Crypto winter is frequently used in the cryptocurrency, DeFi and blockchain industry to denote the current recession that has hit the industry after it made phenomenal gains in 2021. The global economic condition, post-COVID economic losses and record inflation worldwide have led to mass layoffs in the industry.
Coinbase recently trimmed off 18% of its employees to save cash. BlockFi announced the layoff of 400 employees. Crypto.com also wants to lay off a similar number of employees.
However, these layoffs also bring an opportunity to hire some of the best minds in the industry. These are talented people suffering at the hands of fate.
Bit.com is a full-suite cryptocurrency exchange offering spot, futures, perpetual contracts, options and savings. They are one of the top 3 exchanges for cryptocurrency options . The exchange is launched by Matrixport, which is already a Unicorn With a $1B Valuation in 2021. The exchange has its core principles built around security and risk management features. A top-grade firm, Cactus Custody, handles its security. Jihan Wu founded Matrixport in 2019 and the mining rig manufacturer Bitmain.
Recently they have announced to launch USD options within the next few months as a part of their service portfolio.
Bit.com hiring amid layoffs
Bit.com is hiring because it is a golden opportunity.
With so many qualified personnel joining the talent pool and ready to get hired at a moment’s notice, it is a dream come true for many. For example, several exchanges will be desperate to hire Coinbase employees. The reputation gives them a distinct advantage.
Bit.com is taking the maximum benefit of this opportunity by hiring the best talents available in the industry. As per media reports, they are seeking to double their workforce, with a majority of the new hires to be engineers. Undoubtedly this workforce will have a majority of highly skilled employees hired at reasonable salary packages due to the ongoing market crisis.
“We have experienced the ups and downs, and we also committed to the potential future. Crypto enthusiasts and experienced talents are welcome to join Bit.com” said Lan Yue, COO of Bit.com.
A drawback of such hiring could temporarily affect the company’s finances. But we can safely assume that the executives have thought about this before going on such a hiring spree.
As claimed by Lan: ”Bit.com has been hiring and growing aggressively since the beginning of 2022. The recent collapse of the market has no direct impact on our original runway, we have the capacity to stick to our developing and hiring plan. Bear market may bring our users negative sentiment, it also brings us time to strenghten our product and risk management for the next bull market”
A few benefits that they might derive from this hiring are, for example, that they can choose from a large, diverse talent pool. Also, they will get experienced candidates from top competitors that are difficult to get otherwise. Lastly, employees could join immediately without any notice or waiting period. Which will give Bit.com a fast push in its talent strategy.
However, this could also backfire in several ways, starting from putting stress on finances. There is severe uncertainty in the US economy, a major source of capital funding for cryptocurrencies and a major market. Further, several jurisdictions have a severe regulatory crackdown on cryptocurrency companies, including high taxation (30% in India) while European countries seek a ban on the proof-of-work system. All of this, combined with high inflation, is expected to affect the buying capacity of crypto investors and traders.
Conclusion
The world’s economic downturn has also had a bad effect on the cryptocurrency and blockchain industry. With layoffs and cost-cutting from several big crypto companies, there is an opportunity for many companies like Bit.com to hire in good numbers. If this activity goes well with hiring, they could highly benefit from having top-of-the-line professionals in their company.