Despite a significant cost-cutting initiative Goldman Sachs launched last month that would result in 3,200 workers being asked to vacate their desks, Goldman Sachs’ digital assets section is open to expanding its 70-person staff.
According to Mathew McDermott, global head of digital assets at Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), the bank continues to be “hugely supportive” of researching blockchain applications and will make “as appropriate” hires this year. Goldman Sachs’ global head of digital assets, Mathew McDermott, stated that the company continues to be “hugely supportive” of researching blockchain applications and that the business will make “as appropriate” hires this year.
Goldman Sachs Still Hiring
The executive told Bloomberg in Hong Kong last week that the digital assets team has increased from having only four employees in 2020 to having over 70 currently. Despite slashing up to 3,200 positions last month—its worst round of layoffs since the global financial crisis of 2008–2009—the company is rumored to be receptive to expanding its crypto staff.
According to a person with knowledge of the situation, the cuts targeted the company’s key banking and trading businesses and senior, medium, and junior-level personnel. CFO Denis Coleman reportedly stated during a presentation at Goldman Sachs’ 2023 Investor Day in New York that holding off on replacing leaving the staff this year will also let the company focus on “prioritizing smart hiring” as part of the workforce cutbacks.
With the bankruptcy of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX, McDermott stated in December that the company was seeing the potential to purchase crypto companies that are “priced more rationally,” and that they are already performing their due diligence on some crypto organizations. Although FTX was the “poster child” for the sector, the underlying technology “continues to perform,” he said.
