New study reveals which US cities lead crypto hires in 2021

Metropolises led the crypto-related hires in the United States during 2021, but jobs in the space are well dispersed around the country, LinkedIn data revealed.

A new study conducted by LinkedIn for Bloomberg shows that there is not a single hub for crypto or blockchain specialists in the United States. Searching through LinkedIn members in the U.S. who listed a new job in the first nine months of the year that matched keywords crypto, blockchain, Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum or Solidity unveiled that about 53% of crypto jobs are dispersed across the States in small chunks.

As crypto and blockchain stand at the intersection of finance and technology, traditional finance hub New York and tech San Francisco unsurprisingly led the pack. Los Angeles ranked in third place, followed by Miami and Chicago.

Diogo Monica, the co-founder of crypto technology services company Anchorage Digital, highlighted that decentralized organizational structures are driving a remote workforce, especially among crypto companies. “This means cities and states with lower taxes, great infrastructure, and quick access to an international airport will benefit from fully remote work,” he added.

When adjusted for population, the crypto industry’s impact on mid-sized metropolitan areas becomes clearer: For every 100,000 LinkedIn members, at least two people were hired for said crypto jobs in Austin, Denver, Raleigh and Salt Lake City. For example, New York leads the hires with an 18.3% market share, but it hired an average of 2.8 people for every 100,000 LinkedIn members, while Austin, Texas, hired three people for the same scale even though the city has 2% share.

U.S. cities are also trying their best to attract the crypto industry. Newly-elected New York City Mayor Eric Adams shared his plans to make the city the center of the cryptocurrency industry. He also followed Miami Mayor Francis Suarez’s example by stating that he will take his first three paychecks in Bitcoin.