I meant to get to this yesterday, but it appears crypto is beginning to encounter headwinds. Remember my mention of Coinbase’s volume now being dominated by institutional players? They may be entering a time of difficulty:
Crypto exchange Coinbase is laying off 18% of its employees as the digital currency market continues to crumble.
CEO Brian Armstrong said in an open letter Tuesday that the “difficult decision” to lay off about 1,000 employees was made to ensure “we stay healthy during this economic downturn.” The exchange has more than 4,900 employees, according to its website.
Armstrong warned of a looming economic downturn that could extend the latest bear market for crypto.
“We appear to be entering a recession after a 10-plus year economic boom,” Armstrong wrote. “A recession could lead to another crypto winter, and could last for an extended period.” [CNN/Business]
If Coinbase goes under, what does that do to the institutional players? Who gets really hurt?
Speaking of value, has Bitcoin recovered from our last check?
That would be “No“. While it’s not a mad rush to get out of bitcoin, the leading cryptocurrency, there’s also a decided lack of recovery.
And I have to wonder how much of a cascade of damage happens if cryptocurrencies crash badly. Remember NFTs? Their doesn’t seem to be much of an alternative to trading them in crypto, unless you’re going old-fashioned barter.
Which seems quite silly when it comes to computer digital artifacts, doesn’t it?
