Fidelity Says Will Double Down on Hiring for Crypto Units This Year

Fidelity Investments' digital assets arm will double down on hiring this year as it looks to beef up its resources to serve clients who want to invest in crypto assets that trade round the clock.

Fidelity Digital Assets, which currently employs nearly 200 people, is looking to fill 110 new positions in client services, technology and operations that would also focus on assets beyond bitcoin, a company spokesperson told Reuters on Tuesday.

"As the demand for digital assets continues to steadily grow and the marketplace evolves, we will continue to expand our hiring efforts," Tom Jessop, president of Fidelity Digital Assets, said.

Last month, Fidelity Investments became the first major retirement plan provider to allow individuals to allocate part of their savings in bitcoin through their 401(k) investment plans.

News of the hiring comes weeks after cryptocurrencies suffered a major pullback following the collapse of stablecoin terraUSD. Stablecoins are digital tokens pegged to the value of traditional assets.

Bitcoin was last trading at $31,594 (roughly Rs. 24,49,700), down more than half from its all-time high of $69,000 (roughly Rs. 53,50,000) in November.

The digital currency market rout hasn't deterred private investments, with Hong Kong-based crypto lender and asset manager Babel Finance raising $80 million (roughly Rs. 620 crore) at a $2 billion (roughly Rs. 15,506 crore) valuation last week, while venture capital giant Andreessen Horowitz raised $4.5 billion (roughly Rs. 34,890 crore) for its fourth cryptocurrency fund.

© Thomson Reuters 2022