Summary
- Bitwise has reduced its staff by approximately 14%, decreasing its workforce from around 180 to about 155, as confirmed to Bloomberg.
- CEO Hunter Horsley noted that even post-layoffs, the company retains its largest workforce in its eight-year history and anticipates continued growth.
- The firm manages over 70 products with approximately $9 billion in assets, including a $2.3 billion spot Bitcoin ETF.
Bitwise Asset Management has announced a workforce reduction of about 14%, bringing the headcount down to roughly 155 employees from 180, as reported to Bloomberg.
Hunter Horsley, the CEO, emphasized that despite the layoffs, the company’s workforce remains the largest in its history, and he expects growth to persist as cryptocurrencies become increasingly integrated into the broader economy.
According to its website, Bitwise oversees about $9 billion in client assets across more than 70 investment offerings, which include Bitcoin and other ETFs, separate managed accounts, private funds, hedge fund strategies, and staking services.
The timing of these layoffs comes as the crypto sector faces significant challenges, with U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs currently holding around $77.5 billion in net assets. Among these, BlackRock's IBIT commands approximately $47.3 billion, while Fidelity's FBTC accounts for about $10.9 billion, according to SoSoValue. Bitwise’s fund holds around $2.3 billion, making up less than 3% of the total market. Bitcoin's value has nearly halved from its peak of about $64,000 in October 2025, experiencing a downturn that has lasted around ten months.
Industry Contraction
Bitwise is part of a growing trend among cryptocurrency companies that are downsizing. Coinbase reduced its workforce by 14% in May, with CEO Brian Armstrong citing market conditions and the rapid impact of AI on operations as contributing factors. Similarly, prime broker FalconX cut about 10% of its staff earlier this month, letting go of a significant portion of its Singapore office and withdrawing a license application in that region to focus on derivatives.
Some exchanges have ceased operations altogether. BitMEX, known for pioneering the perpetual swap in 2016, announced last month that it would close on September 23 after over 11 years of service. BitMart followed shortly after, shutting down its nine-year-old platform and negatively impacting its token's value.
Retail investors, who previously fueled the crypto boom, are increasingly shifting their focus to sports betting platforms and AI stocks. According to CoinGecko's second-quarter report, the notional volume in prediction markets surged by 48.7% to a record $113.8 billion in three months, while the spot trading volume on the ten largest centralized exchanges fell by 27.9% to $1.95 trillion, and the total crypto market capitalization declined by 12.6%. Barclays analysts have characterized prediction markets as "retail's shiny new toy," while a report from Wintermute based on JPMorgan data indicates that speculative investments have been gradually moving into equities since late 2024.
Despite the layoffs, Bitwise executives remain optimistic about the future of crypto. Chief investment officer Matt Hougan shared with Bloomberg television this week that the market might be nearing the end of its downturn, asserting that the Coldcard exploit, which has drained more than $100 million from self-custody wallets, underscores the case for holding Bitcoin through an ETF instead.