{"id":76708,"date":"2026-08-12T10:01:06","date_gmt":"2026-08-12T10:01:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/bitwise-cuts-14-of-staff-as-its-own-cio-calls-a-bitcoin-bottom\/"},"modified":"2026-08-12T10:01:06","modified_gmt":"2026-08-12T10:01:06","slug":"bitwise-cuts-14-of-staff-as-its-own-cio-calls-a-bitcoin-bottom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/bitwise-cuts-14-of-staff-as-its-own-cio-calls-a-bitcoin-bottom\/","title":{"rendered":"Bitwise Cuts 14% of Staff as Its Own CIO Calls a Bitcoin Bottom"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b>(Originally posted on : Bitcoin News )<\/b><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"@container mb-[25px] rounded-sm overflow-clip py-0.5 pr-0.5 pl-2.5 bg-success-100\">\n<div class=\"flex flex-col gap-m overflow-clip rounded-[6px] !bg-success-10 p-3 @[420px]:p-m\">\n<h2 class=\"m-0 flex items-center gap-s text-[19px] !text-[#1c1c1c] md:text-[20px]\"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"16\" height=\"10\" viewbox=\"0 0 16 10\" fill=\"none\" class=\"shrink-0 text-success-100\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><path d=\"M1 1.5h14\" stroke=\"currentColor\" stroke-width=\"2.5\" stroke-linecap=\"round\"\/><path d=\"M1 8.5h10\" stroke=\"currentColor\" stroke-width=\"2.5\" stroke-linecap=\"round\"\/><\/svg><span>Key Takeaways<\/span><\/h2>\n<ul class=\"m-0 flex list-none flex-col gap-m pl-0\">\n<li class=\"m-0 flex items-start gap-s !text-[#434248]\"><span class=\"mt-2 size-2 shrink-0 rounded-full bg-success-100\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\/><span class=\"text-body\">Bitwise cut 14% of its staff, reducing headcount to about 155 from 180 employees.<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"m-0 flex items-start gap-s !text-[#434248]\"><span class=\"mt-2 size-2 shrink-0 rounded-full bg-success-100\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\/><span class=\"text-body\">The cuts mirror layoffs this year at Coinbase, Gemini, Crypto.com and Kraken amid the slump.<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"m-0 flex items-start gap-s !text-[#434248]\"><span class=\"mt-2 size-2 shrink-0 rounded-full bg-success-100\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\/><span class=\"text-body\">CIO Matt Hougan says bitcoin is bottoming now, citing fading leverage and record stablecoin supply.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2>A Rough Stretch for Crypto\u2019s Asset Managers<\/h2>\n<p>Bitwise Asset Management, one of the largest crypto-focused asset managers in the United States, has laid off roughly 14% of its staff, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2026-08-11\/bitwise-cuts-14-of-jobs-with-crypto-industry-under-pressure\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">according to Bloomberg<\/a>.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_838862\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-838862\" style=\"width:1487px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-838862\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Image source: X<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The reduction comes as a prolonged slump in digital-asset prices has forced firms across the industry to cut costs, even though Bitwise itself recently <a href=\"https:\/\/bitwiseinvestments.com\/newsroom\/bitwise-surpasses-15-billion-in-client-assets\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">surpassed $15 billion in client assets<\/a>, up from about $11 billion in April (suggesting the cuts are about cost discipline rather than shrinking business).<\/p>\n<p>The move also stands in contrast to Bitwise\u2019s trajectory just 18 months ago. In February 2025, the firm <a href=\"https:\/\/news.bitcoin.com\/bitwise-asset-management-raises-70m-to-bolster-crypto-offerings\/\">raised $70 million<\/a> from investors to expand its team and roll out new crypto products. That expansion drive has now reversed as market conditions soured through 2026, even as the firm keeps expanding its product lineup elsewhere, including a <a href=\"https:\/\/news.bitcoin.com\/bitwise-xrp-etf-btc-narrative-collapse-and-more-week-in-review\/\">spot XRP ETF launched<\/a> on the NYSE and filings for 11 additional single-token ETFs tied to tokens such as Hyperliquid, Sui, Near and Aave.<\/p>\n<h2>Bitwise Isn\u2019t Alone in the Cutbacks<\/h2>\n<p>The layoffs place Bitwise alongside a growing list of digital-asset firms trimming staff this year as Coinbase also cut 14% of its workforce earlier in 2026, and exchanges Gemini, Crypto.com and Kraken have all announced reductions as the industry\u2019s job market struggles to recover.<\/p>\n<p>Trackers have counted more than <a href=\"https:\/\/www.trendingtopics.eu\/more-than-7000-jobs-gone-layoffs-in-the-crypto-industry-are-picking-up\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">7,254 disclosed job cuts<\/a> across 47 companies so far this year, a figure the site\u2019s researchers say likely understates the real total since many company disclosures omit concrete headcount stats.<\/p>\n<p>A large chunk of the pressure traces back to bitcoin\u2019s choppy price action in recent months, much of which was compounded (not in price action alone) recently when a firmware flaw rooted in a 2021 Coldcard software update <a href=\"https:\/\/news.bitcoin.com\/featured\/bitcoin-new-wallets-2026-high-coldcard-hack\/\">drained roughly $116 million<\/a> from thousands of addresses across four separate waves starting July 30.<\/p>\n<p>Expected to arrive the same week, the <a href=\"https:\/\/news.bitcoin.com\/regulation-and-legal\/white-house-clarity-act-september-15-deadline\/\">CLARITY Act also stalled<\/a> in the Senate ahead of its August recess. And while bitcoin absorbed both events without a sharp directional move, the extended uncertainty has weighed on trading volumes and, by extension, asset manager revenue.<\/p>\n<h2>The CIO Sees It Differently: \u2018We\u2019re Bottoming\u2019<\/h2>\n<p>While Bitwise reduced its employee count, the firm\u2019s chief investment officer (CIO), Matt Hougan, <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/WallStreetXHQ\/status\/2087360457937994238\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">told reporters a different story<\/a> about where bitcoin\u2019s price is headed, stating that he believes the market is \u201cin the process of bottoming right now,\u201d pointing to a collapse in excess leverage across crypto derivatives markets, funding rates turning decisively negative, amongst other factors.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_838861\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-838861\" style=\"width:1356px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-838861\" src=\"https:\/\/static.news.bitcoin.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/bitwise-cuts-14-of-staff-as-its-own-cio-calls-a-bitcoin-bottom_nwmk.jpg\" alt=\"Bitwise CIO claims that a Bitcoin bottom is in.\" width=\"1356\" height=\"336\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static.news.bitcoin.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/bitwise-cuts-14-of-staff-as-its-own-cio-calls-a-bitcoin-bottom_nwmk-300x74.jpg 300w, https:\/\/static.news.bitcoin.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/bitwise-cuts-14-of-staff-as-its-own-cio-calls-a-bitcoin-bottom_nwmk-1024x254.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/static.news.bitcoin.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/bitwise-cuts-14-of-staff-as-its-own-cio-calls-a-bitcoin-bottom_nwmk-768x190.jpg 768w, https:\/\/static.news.bitcoin.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/bitwise-cuts-14-of-staff-as-its-own-cio-calls-a-bitcoin-bottom_nwmk.jpg 1356w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1356px) 100vw, 1356px\"\/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-838861\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Image source: X<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Hougan has made versions of this bottom call before. Back in July, he argued the <a href=\"https:\/\/news.bitcoin.com\/bull-market-in-sight-bitwise-sees-bottom-forming-ahead-of-fall-rally\/\">bottom was closer than ever<\/a>, pointing to volatility in Strategy\u2019s preferred stock, bitcoin trading below key technical levels, and extreme readings on the Fear and Greed Index as signs of a leverage flush rather than a collapse in demand.<\/p>\n<p>His latest comments add a fresh data point as stablecoin supply (often read as dry powder waiting to enter crypto markets) hit a record $322 billion earlier this year, larger than the foreign currency reserves of 95 countries.<\/p>\n<p>Hougan also pointed to normalizing exchange-traded fund (ETF) flows as a sign that institutional selling pressure is easing, arguing the market is pricing bear-market conditions onto an industry roughly twice the size it was at the last cycle\u2019s bottom.<\/p>\n<p>The next real test for Hougan\u2019s assertions arrives in September, when the Senate is expected to revisit the CLARITY Act, giving traders another catalyst to measure against his bottoming thesis.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/news.bitcoin.com\/crypto-news\/bitwise-cuts-14-percent-staff-cio-bitcoin-bottom\/\">Source link <\/a><br \/>\n<br \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>(Originally posted on : Bitcoin News ) Key Takeaways Bitwise cut 14% of its staff, reducing headcount to about 155 from 180 employees. The cuts mirror layoffs this year at Coinbase, Gemini, Crypto.com and Kraken amid the slump. CIO Matt Hougan says bitcoin is bottoming now, citing fading leverage and record stablecoin supply. A Rough [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3947362404,"featured_media":76709,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76708"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3947362404"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=76708"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76708\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/76709"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=76708"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=76708"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=76708"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}