Bitcoin surge spurs City to recruit crypto natives

Bitcoin surge spurs City to recruit crypto natives

Establishments survive by assimilating useful upstarts and excluding dangerous ones. This is the theme of Victorian novels where self-made entrepreneurs became MPs and American heiresses married dukes. It is also a trend in financial services.

The value of unregulated cryptocurrencies has soared to an estimated $2.8tn. Regulated banks, fund managers and consultants are establishing or expanding fledgling digital asset operations.

The City of London and Wall Street are wrestling with the fear of missing out. This gives workers in the unregulated crypto business a route into “TradFi” or traditional finance.

An experienced candidate can command a base salary of £150,000-£200,000 per year plus bonus, says Robert Lycett, a director of M-Wek, a London recruitment consultant. A blockchain programmer can expect £200,000-£250,000 annually. Temporary staff earn up to £1,500 per day. Even “a talented and enthusiastic [cryptocurrency] hobbyist will get a job”, Lycett adds.

One sceptical response would be that banks and brokers are staffing up on the strength of an ephemeral high in bitcoin. The flagship cryptocurrency is volatile, polluting and sometimes used for illegal payments. It accounts for about two-fifths of the estimated value of cryptos. The world is in a broader asset bubble. When this deflates, bitcoin could easily collapse.

Rich clients would