Executive "Great Migration": How Crypto Enterprises Are Becoming the Ideal Haven for Top Talent?
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Executive "Great Migration": How Crypto Enterprises Are Becoming the Ideal Haven for Top Talent?
Some chase high salaries, some value freedom, and others hope to align with a vision of changing the world.
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsAuthor: Chandler, Foresight News
A company's hiring activities can reveal the actual progress of its strategic execution and reflect shifts in industry demand, offering insights into future market vitality and growth potential.
According to a report by Tiger Research, following the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs in January 2024, global Web3 job postings began to increase significantly. As expectations for market recovery rose, recruitment activity became relatively active.
In the first half of 2024, Web3 job openings increased by approximately 20% year-on-year, indicating a marked improvement in overall industry sentiment compared to the previous year. The rise in job postings was primarily driven by crypto ETF management firms and exchanges.
During the first half of the year, Asia’s Web3 hiring market was most active in Singapore, India, and Hong Kong. Notably, Singapore saw an approximately 23% increase in hiring compared to the second half of 2023.
As demand for talent in the crypto sector grows significantly, the appeal of Web3 is increasingly extending to senior executives from Web2, creating a new trend of high-level cross-industry talent inflow. Top managers from traditional internet giants are being drawn to Web3, bringing their mature Web2 experience into the innovative development of the Web3 space.
For example, Peter Mintzberg, former Global Head of Strategy for Asset & Wealth Management at Goldman Sachs, joined Grayscale as CEO; Dan Odell, former Vice President of Global Product Management at Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, joined ConsenSys as Chief Financial Officer (CFO); Hut 8, a Bitcoin mining firm, hired Sean Glennan, former executive at Citigroup, as CFO; Copper, a crypto custodian, appointed Amar Kuchinad, former Managing Director at Goldman Sachs, as CEO, replacing Dmitry Tokarev; Vugar Usi Zade, former executive at Sony and BeInCrypto, joined Bitget as Chief Operating Officer, among others.
Meanwhile, movement among top-tier institutions within Web3 itself has become increasingly common, with executive "talent migration" rising notably. This enhances managerial fluidity and collaboration across the crypto industry, accelerating competition and maturity within the Web3 sector. Binance has emerged as a prominent "talent magnet," attracting executives from various companies and diverse backgrounds.
According to @_FORAB's statistics, apart from executives moving from OKX to Binance, individuals including the former CFO of Kraken, a former investment manager at OV Capital, and even content creators from CMC have also joined Binance, further strengthening its management team.
Former Binance executives are also flowing into other platforms such as Bitget, forming a multidirectional network of talent migration. For instance, Hon Ng, Bitget’s current Chief Legal Officer, previously served as Binance’s Head of Policy and Legal; Min Lin, Bitget’s Chief Business Officer, formerly led Binance’s global governance and development initiatives.
This overlapping flow of elite professionals and knowledge accelerates the industry’s path toward maturity, endowing the crypto sector with greater adaptability and innovation.
What underlying attractions drive this migration wave? What draws these top talents to the crypto industry? We aim to explore the characteristics that make the crypto industry an ideal destination for senior management, analyze the traits of crypto firms capable of attracting top-tier talent, and examine the industry trends and corporate appeal reflected by this cross-sector talent movement.
Where Will the Wise Birds Perch?
The choices made by top talent resemble selecting a forest to inhabit. Some chase high salaries, others value freedom, while some seek alignment with transformative visions.
As the saying goes, “Wise birds choose where to perch.” These “wise birds” flying into the crypto space naturally do not settle randomly.
Data.ai shows that in October, the top three centralized exchange apps by global download volume were Binance, OKX, and Bitget. Binance recorded 4.06 million downloads, followed by OKX with 2.2 million and Bitget with 1.92 million. Who truly represents the golden branch worth perching on?
In this competition for talent, what are the talent philosophies of these major crypto players?
Binance: Hardcore as a Core Value
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Hardcore: In its official publication “How to Be a Great Binance Employee,” Binance emphasizes “hardcore” as a core value.
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Adaptability: A key trait among Binance employees is the ability to adapt to internal role rotations, handle uncertainty, and consistently deliver high-quality results for users.
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Stress Resilience: Given the fast-paced work environment and high-impact decisions, Binance employees must operate effectively under pressure. If you cannot handle stress or sustained pressure negatively affects your performance, our work environment may not be suitable for you.
OKX: Upholding Fundamental Principles
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Team First: Advocates decentralized management to build a global team. Under a decentralized structure, collaboration is streamlined, with clear goals defined for each department and role.
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Integrity Above All: The blockchain industry is close to money; only those who resist temptation and persist in doing the right thing will ultimately gain recognition for their value.
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Self-Driven: Given the industry’s early stage, only individuals who maintain genuine curiosity and optimism about the sector—and who are willing to deeply understand it—can sustain long-term growth.
Bitget: Dual Drive of Results Orientation and Incentive Mechanisms
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Results-Oriented: Bitget emphasizes pragmatism and results orientation, focusing on candidates who can deliver tangible outcomes. The company promotes decentralization of authority, ensuring high-performing employees receive full empowerment and rewards.
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Open Communication: Management stresses candid communication and direct problem-solving, encouraging team members to provide feedback and resolve issues directly rather than avoiding them or escalating through layers—enabling efficient, direct internal communication and supporting continuous development in a rapidly changing market.
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Future Potential: Values candidates’ adaptability and learning agility, innovative and forward-thinking mindset, global perspective and collaboration skills, risk management and compliance awareness, and teamwork spirit.
In reality, beyond salary, company culture, and career autonomy, a platform’s growth momentum and continuous breakthroughs in technology, products, and markets serve as rare yet powerful sources of attraction.
Choosing a rapidly growing platform means having the opportunity to participate in more projects, take on greater challenges, and achieve expanded career development—all within a shorter timeframe. Bitget, with its rapid expansion and impressive market performance, has become one of the most attractive roosting grounds for these “wise birds.”
What Fuels the Migration Wave?
More Than Just a Job
S-curve dynamics are ubiquitous in the evolution of any industry or technology. After reaching the limit point of the first curve, the market opens up new directions and initiates a second growth curve. The incubation phase of innovative technologies represents an extremely brief yet opportunity-rich window.
From traditional financial giants to tech pioneers, numerous senior executives are leaving their familiar “first curve” environments to enter the crypto industry—an emerging “second curve” innovation frontier.
This migration wave is no coincidence. It stands as strong evidence of trust in and anticipation for the crypto industry as a breakthrough path along the second curve.
Redefining Financial Incentives
Certainly, the appeal of the crypto industry manifests in high compensation returns—but even more so in innovative pay structures and substantial value appreciation potential.
Traditional corporate compensation relies mainly on fixed salaries and annual bonuses, offering limited growth potential. In contrast, the crypto industry deeply aligns executives’ personal interests with long-term company success through mechanisms such as options, token incentives, and long-term profit-sharing based on platform performance.
In 2023, Dragonfly Capital surveyed 49 crypto companies and found that most strongly considered adopting tokens, with only 14% clearly stating they would never launch one. As funding amounts, stages, and scales increase, companies are more likely to plan and issue tokens.
The Attraction of Corporate Culture
The uniqueness of corporate culture is a key driver behind executive mobility. Within the crypto industry, distinct management styles across platforms have become important markers that attract talent.
By comparison, Binance leans toward rapid decision-making and high innovation; Bitget’s management style, shaped by its founder’s decisive and action-oriented leadership, fosters a results-driven culture. Coinbase places greater emphasis on compliance and transparency, appealing to managers with different preferences.
Market Volatility and Talent Redistribution
Market volatility and waves of layoffs have further intensified executive mobility in the crypto industry. During downturns, cost-cutting measures lead many companies to downsize—including significant executive departures. For example, Binance.US laid off two-thirds of its workforce in March due to SEC litigation; Kraken cut around 15% of staff in October; Consensys announced a 20% reduction amid macroeconomic pressures and rising legal costs. In this environment, many top talents opt to move to platforms with stronger growth potential.
High-quality crypto firms typically demonstrate greater resilience and adaptability during market turbulence, maintaining stability during crises and seizing new opportunities amid industry restructuring—offering senior executives seeking long-term careers a more ideal working environment and development platform.
This Web3 Ticket—Will You Board It?
In summary, crypto enterprises are becoming ideal destinations for senior talent—a trend fueled by rapid market expansion and technological innovation, and reflective of the unique appeal of the crypto industry in terms of managerial openness and incentive mechanisms.
For top-tier talent, joining the crypto industry is not merely about “boarding the Web3 train”—it requires discernment. Such a decision demands careful consideration. Senior professionals making career moves need strategic foresight to identify companies with sound long-term strategies and strong execution capabilities, ensuring their career development achieves maximum long-term returns and stability within this emerging field.
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