According to the data provided by LinkedIn, the business and employment service platform has seen a massive 73% increase in crypto-related hiring. This, according to the platform, is a direct result of the crypto boom that happened in 2021.
2021 saw crypto enter the mainstream unlike ever before. This was paralleled by the bull run which saw many crypto projects attain all-time high’s in prices and interaction.
In an interview with Fortune, Devin Bannerjee of LinkedIn said,
“For the finance industry, crypto’s appeal to younger professionals means fintech’s threat to the talent pipeline for big banks and asset managers will only continue to grow.”
In the early 2000s, just before the financial crisis of 2008, Wall Street experienced a similar surge in acquiring quantitative expertise. It would appear that the crypto world is walking on a similar trajectory, albeit there is no sign of a crash in the same context as that of 2008’s housing crisis.
Stuart Popejoy, CEO of Kadena says,
“The days when finance saw tech as a strategic asset ended with the ‘algo boom’ of the late 2000s, and since then, finance has seen tech mainly as a cost center, however huge, that must be cut down whenever possible….Crypto, on the other hand, is just starting to have the kind of flow to show up on finance’s radar, and the tech is still new enough that it is both strategic to the company to hire top talent, and attractive to developers as a challenge and learning opportunity.”
So, where is the crypto talent headed?
As per LinkedIn’s data, the majority of talent is going into tech-centric centers like San Francisco and New York in terms of locational concentration. Other locations, such as Austin and Miami, are also witnessing an increase in hiring.
Regarding talent moving to Austin and Miami, Colin Zarzour, Head of Operations at Koii, says,
“Both cities have been sucking in a tremendous amount of talent — with much of this talent leaving cities like San Francisco and, to a lesser extent, New York City and Los Angeles,”
He goes on to say,
“It’s fascinating that, specifically in crypto, sometimes what Discord you’ve joined or which Twitter Space you’ve been speaking in can shape your network as much as geographical hubs….That’s why I think even ‘non-hub’ cities should consider investing in quality public support for innovation and entrepreneurship, as you can’t be sure where the next unicorn will be developed in crypto.”support for innovation and entrepreneurship, as you can’t be sure where the next unicorn will be developed in crypto.”