Blockchain.com Shutters Asset Management Subsidiary Amid Crypto Winter and Industry Turmoil

According to reports and a filing that shows its name struck off the U.K. companies’ register list, Blockchain.com is sunsetting its Blockchain.com Asset Management subsidiary. A company spokesperson cited deteriorating “macroeconomic conditions” and the “crypto winter” as some of the reasons for halting the institutional business.

Over the last two days, it appears that the downward pressure from the crypto winter will continue, as the global crypto market capitalization has slid 6.82% over the last day to $931 billion. Additionally, there has been a contagion of failing crypto firms and bankruptcies across the industry, as well as significant layoffs, with no firm seeming to be spared. On Friday, reports detailed that Blockchain.com is halting its London-based subsidiary, Blockchain.com Asset Management (BCAM), and market observers noted that the firm has been struck from the U.K. companies’ register list.

A spokesperson for the company spoke with Emily Nicolle, a Bloomberg News correspondent who was the first to report on the news. “Scoop: [Blockchain.com] has suspended its asset management arm, moving to shut down the unit exactly 11 months after it launched. In that time, the firm cut hundreds of jobs and saw its valuation potentially slashed to a fraction of its former $14 [billion in] size,” Nicolle tweeted. Nicolle reached out to Blockchain.com, and a spokesperson provided a comment about the BCAM situation.

“Blockchain.com Asset Management launched in April 2022, shortly before macroeconomic conditions deteriorated rapidly,” a spokesperson told Nicolle by email. “With the ‘crypto winter’ now approaching the one-year mark, we made the business decision to pause operating this institutional product.” BCAM was formed through a partnership between Blockchain.com and Altis Partners. When BCAM was announced, it was meant to attract high-net-worth individuals, institutional investors, and family offices.

What do you think the future holds for cryptocurrency companies amidst the ongoing challenges faced by the industry, such as the crypto winter and increased regulation? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.