Global Web3 Job Postings Analysis
2023 Report
TL;DR
The global Web3 recruitment market in 2023 is still significantly lower than in 2021/2022. The pressure on crypto exchanges due to US SEC regulation, especially Binance, has had a major impact on job postings.
Regionally, North America remains a strong influence, and Asia took over Europe for third place. This is largely due to the increased number of CEX-related hires in Singapore and Hong Kong. The gap is expected to widen as the Asian market continues to grow.
By sector, CEX shows the highest number of hires, with a share of up to 30% monthly. This shows that it is still the most established business model in the Web3 market.
Introduction
A company's job postings are a measure of the actual execution of the company's strategy and the demand in a particular industry, which can be used to predict how active the market will be in the future. In this article, we will analyze global Web3 hiring trends to provide an overall insight into the Web3 market. The primary data source for this report is publicly available data on Web3Jobs, a site that provides job listings in the Web3 space.
2023 Global Web3 Market Hiring Trends
Hiring in the global Web3 market is still less than half of what it was during the 2021/2022 boom. This is because the market has not yet fully recovered and is facing increased regulation, especially in the US and Europe. Nevertheless, the first half of 2023 has seen an upward trend in the number of hires, indicating a revitalized market.
Since June 2023, the number of job postings has plummeted by 50%, which is expected to have been due to headwinds faced by the web3 market as a whole, as the US SEC prosecuted Binance, Coinbase, and others. In addition, direct regulation of Binance in Europe and elsewhere has led to restructuring and hiring reductions at the most recruitment-intensive exchanges. Binance reported 288 new hires in May 2023, but only 27 in the following month of June, a drop of nearly 90%. With crypto exchanges accounting for as much as 30% of total Web3 market hiring, their decline has likely had a direct impact on the overall Web3 hiring trend.
This is followed by an overall flat trend in the second half of 2023. However, the recent surge in crypto trading volume, coupled with expectations of Bitcoin ETF approval, is expected to increase hiring in the Web3 market in 2024. With the expectation of market revitalization, Web3 companies are expected to once again actively develop their business and recruit talent. 2024 is expected to bring more challenges and opportunities for innovation than 2023.
2023 Web3 Market Hiring Trends by Region (Monthly Cumulative)
When looking at hiring trends in the Web3 market by region in 2023, we see a lot of hiring activity in 1) North America, 2) Remote Work, 3) Asia, 4) Europe, 5) Middle East, 6) Latin America, and 7) Africa. North America is still a very influential market, accounting for 40% of all global job postings. It's also worth noting that Asia is more active in hiring than Europe. Asia accounts for about 20% of all job postings, while Europe accounts for about 15%, a significant difference. We expect the gap between these two regions to widen over time as the global Web3 market becomes increasingly focused on Asia.
Web3 Market Hiring Trends by Sector in Asia 2023
Looking at the regional Web3 hiring trends in the APAC region in 2023, we see the most hiring activity in 1) Singapore, 2) Hong Kong, 3) India, and 4) Australia. In particular, Singapore is a financial hub in Asia and has a strong presence in the Web3 market due to its business-friendly environment. This year, Singapore has tightened regulations to reduce risks across the Web3 ecosystem, but many Web3 companies have emerged and participated in the market due to the development and fostering of Web3 technology centered around the Monetary Authority of Singapore, and relatively clear regulations that have resolved some of the uncertainties in the market.
Hong Kong is the next most significant, accounting for about 20% of all job postings in the Asia region. In Hong Kong, the opening of the crypto market in June 2023 is likely to have kickstarted active hiring. India accounts for about 13% of all job postings in Asia. The country has the third largest Web3 labor pool in the world, attracting many global companies. However, hiring for the Indian market itself has not exploded due to a lack of institutional framework for crypto, including high taxes on cryptocurrencies. Rather, it is speculated that Indian tech talent has left the country for global markets. Lastly, Australia is developing a variety of financial solutions companies as its fintech industry is revitalizing, and Web3 companies related to financial infrastructure are actively hiring.
South Korea and Japan still have a limited presence in the Asian market. This can be attributed to the fact that these countries tend to prioritize the employment of domestic talent due to their familiarity with their business culture. For this reason, hiring is more likely to be done through local recruiting platforms than through global platforms, which may explain the limited numbers.
Top Centralized Cryptocurrency Exchanges by Hiring in 2023
Centralized crypto exchanges with the most hires in 2023 are 1) OKX, 2) Binance, 3) Crypto.com, 4) Gemini, and 5) Kraken. OKX is the third-largest global spot exchange and has been the most active in hiring until recently as it looks to take on Binance and Upbit. OKX's expansion across the Asian region is particularly impressive, with markets in Hong Kong, India, South Korea, Australia, Thailand, Malaysia, and more.
Overall, 2023 will see a slowdown in crypto exchanges due to sanctions imposed by various regulatory authorities, including the US SEC. However, crypto exchanges are still recognized as the most established business model in the Web3 market, and recruitment is expected to continue. In addition, Binance's position as the global leader is beginning to falter. Various crypto exchanges, including local exchanges, are expected to emerge and compete for market share.
Active Recruitment Trends in Web3 Infrastructure Companies
The next most active hiring category is "infrastructure". Contrary to expectations regarding the Asia Web3 market, hiring is still largely centered in North America and Europe. However, there have been notable shifts in recruitment towards Asia as well. Solana, Ripple, Avalanche, and Arbitrum have all made hires in Asia in 2023. This trend is expected to be followed by more hires in the region as they become more exposed to real business opportunities. Namely, Polygon has been hiring heavily in Asia after partnering with several Asia-based companies.
Other notable Web3 Hiring Trends
There are other interesting Web3 hiring trends in 2023. First, there is a rise in the opportunity of the Vietnamese market. Previously a leading P2E market, Vietnam has consistently recorded low hiring numbers after the boom in 2021. However, Vietnam's global Web3 projects such as Kyber Network and Sky Mavis have recently begun hiring and are preparing to take off again in 2024. It will be interesting to see how the reduced influence of the Vietnamese market will change in 2024.
Stablecoin issuers have also actively hired in 2023. Circle and Paxos have both seen a surge in hiring, with an impressive 4x and 9x increase respectively over last year. This is in line with the aggressive issuance of stablecoins by both companies in recent years as they strive to establish a strong presence in the global market.
Circle has begun to expand its hiring in Asia. Following its recent partnership with Grab in Singapore, Circle is now expanding to Hong Kong and Taiwan. This is in line with the opening of crypto markets in the region, which are expected to be highly liquid and active. The company also sees a lot of business opportunities in the region, with many jurisdictions having stablecoin regulatory frameworks either in place or in the works.
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Disclaimer
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