It has been reported that Anchorage Digital is laying off 17% of its workforce as crypto winter grips even one of the more well-funded regulated firms in the industry. If the headcount is still around the 400 employees reported by CEO Nathan McCauley to Congress in February 2025, that would entail approximately 68 layoffs.The move comes eight months after Tether invested $100 million in Anchorage at a $4.2 billion valuation.Cost-cutting sits next to capital strengthReportedly, employees were told by McCauley that Anchorage is cutting jobs due to the general downturn in the current crypto market, as per The Information. The number 68 mentioned here is an estimate and not an official number. It is based on the 17% cut reported by The Information and the earlier employee data reported by McCauley.The timing is remarkable. The investment by Tether in February valued Anchorage at $4.2 billion and has made possible the payment to employees through the first employee tender offer. Thus, the layoffs do not appear as a desperate need for cash, but as an effort to reduce expenses in response to the worsening economic situation.A crypto labor market that kept shrinking through 2026Anchorage is not the only company going through layoffs. CryptoJobsList reports that there have been at least 7,411 job cuts in 60 crypto companies in 2026. The biggest among these is Block’s 4,000 job cuts in February.Hiring activity has also declined. In January, Tiger Research reported that the number of new job listings on the leading crypto job portals declined by approximately 80% on a year-over-year basis, continuing a decline that began after 2022.2026 Crypto Layoffs: Anchorage Digital’s 17% Staff Cut in ContextThe hiring that survives points toward infrastructureThe remaining vacancies in the job market are becoming increasingly specialized. Out of a total of 2,932 openings monitored by Tiger Research in the first half of 2026, engineering accounted for 34.1%, followed by compliance and legal jobs at 10.4%. Meanwhile, stablecoins and payments comprised 13.4% of the total job openings in the market.That’s consistent with Anchorage’s approach. The company identifies itself as a service provider to institutions in custody, trading, settlement, and other digital asset-related activities. It has also advanced further into the institutional market infrastructure with the development of products that link regulatory custody with crypto trading.Institutions keep buying even as firms get leanerInstitutional interest has not faded. In a 2026 survey published by EY, it was revealed that 73% of the companies surveyed intended to expand their investments in digital assets over the following year.Similarly, the analysis of BCG established that infrastructure, such as custody, settlement, and tokenized assets, is becoming more important due to the increasing integration of digital assets with traditional finance.Anchorage fits into the changing picture. In June, Binance included Anchorage in its triparty banking network, allowing institutions to keep collateral in regulated custody while trading.The layoffs therefore indicate a crypto industry that is becoming more selective about where its funds go. There is still enough capital, but companies are limiting their spending. For Anchorage, the issue is whether the company can thrive with a smaller workforce while focusing on infrastructure projects as its avenue of growth.Don’t just read crypto news. Understand it. Subscribe to our newsletter. It's free.