Crypto Industry Recruitment Report: Increased DeFi Job Seekers, Marketing Roles Growing in Asia-Pacific
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Crypto Industry Recruitment Report: Increased DeFi Job Seekers, Marketing Roles Growing in Asia-Pacific
Talent recruitment is linked to the U.S. election cycle.
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsAuthor: Zackary Skelly (Head of Talent, Dragonfly)
Translation: Zen, PANews
Dragonfly Capital, a leading crypto venture capital firm, conducts quarterly analyses of the crypto job market to provide insights on hiring trends, candidate sentiment, portfolio company activity, and forecasts for its portfolio companies.
Hiring Market Trends
While Dragonfly monitors multiple signals when analyzing the market, "new job postings from portfolio companies" best reflect overall industry sentiment. In short, the crypto talent hiring market has been gradually recovering since 2023, surged in Q1 2024, but stalled in Q2.
Quarterly Job Changes
In Q2 2024, engineering and design roles remained relatively stable, GTM (Go-To-Market) positions saw a spike, and data science roles also experienced significant growth. Marketing roles shifted toward leadership-level hires.
Year-over-Year Comparison
Comparing Q2 2023 with Q2 2024, GTM roles showed notable growth, especially in finance, operations, legal, and customer support.
Engineering roles have become more specialized, with strong demand for Rust developers. DevRel (Developer Relations) and Protocol Engineering roles remain highly sought after. Design roles, however, saw a significant decline.
Candidate Interest
In Q2 2024, there were more DeFi-focused candidates in the market, while those focused on infrastructure stayed put, seeking product-market fit. Many expressed skeptical curiosity toward AI-crypto convergence—exciting, yet use cases remain unclear and seemingly premature.
In addition, zero-knowledge proofs (ZK) continue to be a highly attractive technical domain among senior software engineers (Sr SWEs).
Shifting Priorities and Increased Scrutiny
Candidates are seeking teams with credible roadmaps beyond TGE, rather than empty "ToTheMoon" slogans, and show preference for companies with strong ecosystems and well-known brands. Few candidates are willing to consider roles that don't align with their skills or have poorly defined job descriptions.
Burnout in Crypto and Openness to Web2
An increasing number of native crypto job seekers are open to Web2 opportunities while still pursuing roles in crypto. Conversely, spot ETF approvals and pro-crypto U.S. policies have attracted more talent from traditional finance and Web2 sectors.
Work Models and Compensation Expectations
Remote and hybrid work remain preferred, though more companies are beginning to discuss establishing physical offices. Salary expectations remain high, and most candidates are unwilling to compromise.
Portfolio Hiring Trends
Several Dragonfly portfolio companies ramped up hiring in Q2, showing increased interest in niche, product-focused engineering roles such as frontend development.
GTM hiring grew in the Asia-Pacific region, while engineering roles expanded across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA). Additionally, hiring momentum among Layer 1 projects (Alt L1s) is strengthening.
Hiring Market Outlook
Hiring correlates with the U.S. election cycle. Trump’s pro-crypto stance and Harris’s evolving position have sparked discussions that could drive GTM hiring. Dragonfly expects this trend to continue, and as use cases solidify, candidate sentiment around AI-crypto integration will shift from skepticism to excitement.
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