Several firms and companies have fallen victim to the recent crypto winter. Last year, GameStop rescinded its plans to break into the crypto ecosystem. Earlier this month, payment firms MasterCard and Visa placed their proposed crypto plans on hold due to the crypto winter. And now, Blockchain.com will follow in their footsteps.

Blockchain.com has revealed that it will shut down its asset management arm. 

Blockchain.com Asset Management (BCAM) has voluntarily filed to strike the product of the firm’s register. The asset management arm was released 11 months ago in collaboration with Altis Partners.

In a statement made by a representative of Blockchain.com, the rapid deterioration of macroeconomic conditions is why the 11-month-old Blockchain.com Asset Management had to be closed. The spokesperson went on to add:

“With crypto winter now approaching the one-year mark, we made the business decision to pause operating this institutional product.”

The Blockchain.com Asset Management subsidiary was designed to offer users “algorithm-based risk management exposure” to BTC and DeFi products.

In April 2022, Blockchain.com was in the process of negotiating with several banks to go public with BCAM. However, a venture capitalist estimated the worth of the asset management arm to be around $3 to 4 billion. This new figure is roughly 20% of the initial funds that were raised for the project in March 2022.

Number of Layoffs In Crypto Firms
Number of Layoffs In Crypto Firms, Source: Bloomberg

How Much is the Crypto Winter Affecting Crypto Firms?

At the start of this year, Blockchain.com let go of 28% of its employees due to the obstacles the crypto industry encountered in 2022. 

Other crypto financial service providers have also had to dismiss some members of their task force to keep their companies afloat.