The Week That Changed Everything

The Week That Changed Everything

Date: 24 Nov 2025

Bitcoin dropped below $90,000. Over $200 million in liquidations. Extreme fear levels not seen since mid-2023.

But something else happened last week that matters far more than price action:

The OCC gave U.S. banks permission to hold crypto on their balance sheets. Japan announced it's regulating Bitcoin and Ethereum like stocks and bonds. New Hampshire approved the first-ever Bitcoin-backed municipal bond. And the CFTC nominee outlined clear regulatory frameworks.

While everyone panicked about Bitcoin's 30% drop, the infrastructure for institutional crypto adoption was being built in real-time.

After 20 years in recruitment, we can tell you: The gap between what the market is panicking about and what actually matters for hiring has never been wider.

The Regulatory Tsunami Nobody Noticed

Here's what happened while traders watched charts crash:

November 18 - The OCC Decision: The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued guidance allowing national banks to hold and spend cryptocurrency to support banking activities. Banks can now directly manage digital assets, outsource custody to approved third parties, and operate without prior supervisory approval.

Translation: Every major U.S. bank just got the green light to build crypto infrastructure. Not explore. Build.

November 16 - Japan's Bombshell: Japan's FSA announced plans to classify Bitcoin and Ethereum as financial instruments under the same framework as stocks and bonds. They're also replacing the current "miscellaneous income" tax with a flat 20% tax on crypto gains.

Translation: The world's third-largest economy just legitimized crypto at the highest regulatory level. Japan is treating Bitcoin like Sony and Toyota.

November 17 - New Hampshire's Bold Move: Authorized a $100 million Bitcoin-backed conduit bond. The first of its kind in the United States.

Translation: Municipal finance just entered the blockchain era. Other states will follow.

November 19 - The CFTC Hearing: Michael Selig outlined clear priorities: establishing frameworks for digital asset spot markets, faster licensing, and better cross-border coordination. He committed to being a "steady cop on the beat."

Translation: Regulatory clarity is coming. The uncertainty that paralyzed institutional capital for years is ending.

The Paradox: Bitcoin Crashed During the Best Regulatory Week Ever

Bitcoin fell below $90K the same week we got the most significant regulatory progress in crypto history.

Here's what we're telling every founder and candidate: Price action and infrastructure buildout have completely decoupled.

The market is pricing short-term uncertainty. Regulations are building for long-term inevitability. These are two different timelines. Understanding that difference is everything.

The Hiring Divergence

Last week exposed how companies are responding:

The Panickers:

Froze hiring
Rescinded offers
"Reassessing headcount"

They're treating regulatory wins like they don't exist and price drops like they're existential.

The Builders:

Accelerated compliance and legal hires
Doubled down on banking infrastructure roles
Started recruiting for Japan expansion
Increased offers to beat frozen competitors

They're treating price drops like noise and regulatory progress like the signal it is.

Guess which group is winning the talent war?

The Data: Hiring Didn't Stop

Despite the worst week of the year:

258 Web3 jobs posted in November
22,000+ active Web3 positions globally
163 remote crypto jobs added last week alone
Salaries holding at $48K-$300K depending on role
70% of placements still remote

Companies with weak fundamentals paused. Companies positioning for institutional adoption kept hiring and upgraded their talent pool while competitors froze.

The Skills That Actually Matter Right Now

1. Regulatory Compliance (Hottest Category)

The OCC decision, Japan's shift, and CFTC roadmap created massive demand for:

Compliance officers who bridge TradFi and DeFi
Legal experts in securities law and crypto
Policy professionals navigating multi-jurisdictional regulation
Risk management specialists

Salary: $110K-$240K+ for senior roles

2. Banking Infrastructure Engineers

U.S. banks can now hold crypto. They need:

Blockchain infrastructure engineers
Custody solution architects
Payment rail integrators
Institutional-grade security specialists

Salary: $130K-$270K+

3. Institutional Onboarding and Sales

Regulatory clarity means institutional capital can enter. That requires:

Relationship managers with TradFi backgrounds
Onboarding specialists who navigate compliance
Sales professionals who speak both languages

Salary: $100K-$200K+ with performance incentives

What Smart Companies Are Doing Differently

1. They're Framing the Opportunity Correctly

Bad pitch: "We're a crypto company. Things are volatile right now, but we think the market will recover."

Good pitch: "The OCC just opened crypto to every major U.S. bank. Japan is regulating Bitcoin like stocks. We're building the infrastructure for that transition. The next 18 months will define who wins institutional adoption. Join us."

See the difference?

2. They're Moving Faster

While competitors "pause to reassess," smart companies are compressing timelines and closing offers within 10 days. Speed is the ultimate advantage right now.

3. They're Hiring for 2027, Not Q1 2026

They're not asking "What if Bitcoin drops another 20%?" They're asking "Where do we need to be when institutional adoption goes mainstream in 18-24 months?"

The Institutional Wave Is Actually Here

When the OCC allows banks to hold crypto, when Japan regulates Bitcoin like equities, when municipalities issue Bitcoin-backed bonds, when the CFTC outlines clear frameworks, this isn't talk. This is infrastructure.

BlackRock's Bitcoin ETF: $40B+ in assets. JPMorgan: launching tokenized deposits. Fidelity: expanding custody. Goldman Sachs: tokenizing investment products.

This isn't coming. It's here. Distribution just requires the right people.

What Candidates Should Do Right Now

1. Stop watching price charts. Your skills determine hiring, not Bitcoin's price.

2. Highlight regulatory understanding. Experience with compliance, TradFi regulation, or securities law is the hottest skillset right now.

3. Target companies building for institutions. Banking infrastructure, custody solutions, compliance tools, payment systems, tokenized securities.

4. Ask the right questions:

"How are you positioning for institutional adoption?"
"What's your compliance strategy?"
"Are you building for frameworks like Japan's FIEA or the CFTC's guidance?"

The answers tell you who gets it.

What Founders Should Do Right Now

We had a call with a DeFi founder Friday. Bitcoin was at $89K. He was spiraling.

"Should we pause hiring? Conserve cash? What if it drops to $70K?"

Here's what we told him:

"The OCC just gave banks permission to hold crypto. Japan is regulating Bitcoin like stocks. Your competitors who understand this are hiring the compliance officers, infrastructure engineers, and institutional specialists that will define the next cycle. If you pause because of price action, you'll spend 2026 playing catch-up."

That's the difference between builders and reactors.

The Uncomfortable Truth

The Bitcoin crash was healthy for Web3 hiring.

It flushed out:

Companies built on speculation
Fair-weather candidates who only cared about token prices
Founders who were never serious about building through cycles

What's left is smaller, but it's real. It's the companies that kept hiring when Bitcoin fell 30%. It's the candidates who kept applying during extreme fear. It's the builders who understand regulatory progress matters more than daily price action.

That's the best talent pool we've seen in years.

Final Thoughts: The Decoupling

November 17-24, 2025 will be remembered as the week when two things became clear:

Short-term price action is disconnected from long-term infrastructure development.
The companies that understand this will win the next decade.

Bitcoin crashing 30% is noise. The OCC allowing banks to hold crypto is signal. Japan regulating Bitcoin like equities is signal. New Hampshire issuing Bitcoin-backed bonds is signal. The CFTC outlining frameworks is signal.

For hiring, signal matters infinitely more than noise.

The best talent is going to companies that see regulatory progress as the starting gun for institutional adoption.

The rest will keep reacting to price charts and wondering why they can't hire.

Twenty years in recruitment has taught us: Companies that hire through uncertainty dominate when certainty arrives.

Uncertainty just arrived. The companies building through it are the ones that will matter in 2027.

Make sure you're one of them.

Ready to hire smart — or be hired into something big?

Let’s talk. HERE

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The Week That Changed Everything