Former JPMorgan, Barclays execs on why crypto jobs attractive even in bear market

cointelegraph.com:

Despite the ongoing cryptocurrency market decline and associated forced layoffs in major crypto firms, a career in crypto doesn’t turn less attractive to many traditional finance executives.

European crypto exchange-traded fund (ETF) provider 21Shares announced three major hires on Wednesday to expand its presence in countries like France, Germany and the United Arab Emirates.

Marina Baudéan, 21Shares’ newly appointed head of France, Belgium and Luxembourg, is debuting her crypto career after working for more than 15 years at the British universal bank Barclays.

Baudéan is confident that crypto is “all about the next generation of technology,” and it’s here to stay despite market fluctuations or other issues. Having witnessed many technological changes throughout her career, she drew parallels between crypto and the early days of digital trading, stating:

“Making the move from traditional finance to crypto was a natural progression to me,” Baudéan said in an interview with Cointelegraph, adding that the growth and momentum around crypto made her eager to move into crypto.

Oliver Schäfer, 21Shares’ new head of Germany, also joined the crypto ETF firm with a solid traditional finance background, bringing decades of experience across major financial firms. Prior to starting a crypto career, Schäfer spent more than 15 years at the American investment bank JPMorgan.

“I believe in the long-term opportunity of crypto — the asset class is growing and is only in its early days, so I am focused on the long-term opportunity versus the short-term market conditions,” Schäfer said, adding that it is an “exciting time to be in crypto,” Schäfer noted that he first invested in crypto in 2020, eventually growing more interested in the