Bitwise Asset Management has cut roughly 14% of its workforce, reducing its staff to about 155 employees as the crypto asset manager adjusts to a weaker digital-asset market. Chief Executive Officer Hunter Horsley confirmed the reduction in an emailed statement, describing it as an adjustment to Bitwise’s global team.
The layoffs put Bitwise among a growing list of cryptocurrency companies trimming costs after years of expansion. The firm’s decision also follows a decline in assets at its Bitwise 10 Crypto Index Fund, or BITW, which had fallen 31% in the first seven months of 2026, according to the fund’s factsheet.
Horsley said the remaining team is nevertheless the largest Bitwise has had during his eight years leading the company. That suggests the firm is reducing the pace and cost of expansion rather than withdrawing from business lines built during the previous market cycle.
Fund assets fall as market conditions weaken
BITW, one of Bitwise’s best-known products, offers exposure to a basket of major crypto assets. Its 31% decline in net assets between January and July reflects both the pressure on token prices and the effect that falling markets can have on fund values.
Bitcoin traded near $63,700 in the second week of August, while the total value of the crypto market recently slipped to $2.26 trillion. Rising crude oil prices have added fresh inflation concerns, creating a less favorable environment for risk assets that includes digital currencies.
Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan has argued that Bitcoin has remained relatively resilient despite several negative developments, including delays surrounding the Clarity Act and Bitcoin sales by Strategy. Hougan has also said large wealth-management platforms could become a “quiet catalyst” for the next bull market as more traditional financial firms expand access to digital-asset products.
That view leaves Bitwise balancing two competing realities: an expectation that wealth platforms could increase demand over time, and a current market environment that requires tighter operating discipline.
Chorus One acquisition expands staking footprint
The staffing reduction comes only months after Bitwise completed its acquisition of Chorus One, a staking provider. The transaction, completed in February, was designed to expand Bitwise’s staking capabilities across more than 30 proof-of-stake blockchains.
Staking involves committing crypto assets to help secure and operate a proof-of-stake network in exchange for potential rewards. For asset managers, it can create a service and revenue line beyond simply offering funds that track token prices.
The Chorus One deal gave Bitwise deeper infrastructure in a segment that has drawn increasing attention from institutions and regulated asset managers. Yet operating a global staking business also brings technical, compliance and personnel costs, particularly as token prices and client demand become less predictable.
Reducing staff after an acquisition can indicate a company is seeking to integrate overlapping operations while preserving the products it considers strategically important. Bitwise has not indicated that it plans to retreat from staking, and the acquisition remains its most visible move beyond crypto index products and exchange-traded funds.
Crypto companies cut payrolls
Bitwise’s reduction follows workforce cuts at several other digital-asset companies in recent months. Polygon Labs announced its second round of layoffs this year as it worked to complete its acquisition of Coinme and shift toward a payments-focused business.
BitGo reduced its staff by 15% in June. Coinbase cut its workforce by 14% in May, according to the company, as it pursued what it described as AI-native operations during the market downturn.
The common thread is not identical business models but a shared effort to make companies less dependent on the high staffing levels built during periods of stronger token prices, elevated trading activity and aggressive product launches. Payments companies, custodians, blockchain developers and asset managers face different revenue drivers, but all can be exposed to declining market activity.
Artificial-intelligence tools are also becoming part of the cost equation. Companies increasingly describe automation as a way to reduce manual work in customer support, compliance workflows, software development and internal operations. The effects vary by company, but the trend places pressure on teams whose work can be partly standardized or supported by software.
Bitwise faces a leaner test of its strategy
For Bitwise, the staff cuts will place greater emphasis on whether its existing fund business, staking operations and institutional relationships can support growth without the expense profile of recent years.
The decline in BITW’s net assets shows how quickly a market downturn can affect an asset manager’s visible scale. Asset-based fees can shrink when fund values fall, even if clients do not sell their holdings, making cost controls more urgent for firms tied closely to crypto-market performance.
At the same time, Bitwise’s continued investment in staking and Horsley’s emphasis on the size of the remaining team indicate that the company is preserving capacity for a recovery rather than treating the downturn as a reason to abandon expansion plans entirely.
The layoffs therefore fit a sector increasingly structured around endurance. Companies that expanded rapidly during stronger markets are now being forced to decide which products, infrastructure and staff are essential for operating through a prolonged period of lower token prices and more cautious institutional demand.
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