How to work in Bitcoin: The challenge of leaving fiat jobs

When Anja Schuetz left the broader crypto space to work exclusively in Bitcoin, she hit an unexpected roadblock: knowing where to look. Unlike web3, where opportunities were everywhere, Bitcoin jobs were scattered across company pages and niche job boards with no central hub.

Feeling discouraged, she launched Bitvocation—a platform that aggregates Bitcoin-only job listings to help Bitcoiners find work aligned with their values.

The rise of Bitcoin-only careers

Schuetz knows firsthand how difficult it can be to break into Bitcoin-only jobs. A self-described "hardcore Bitcoiner," she had worked in crypto and web3 for years before realizing she wanted to dedicate herself fully to Bitcoin. But when she started searching for opportunities, she hit a wall.

"I was looking for job boards, job feeds. And I was like, 'Where do you even find jobs in Bitcoin?'" she recalled. "It's easy for me to find work in web3, because that's where my network is. This is where the jobs come to me. But now that I wanted to do only Bitcoin, I was like, 'Where are these jobs?'"

That sense of disappointment led her to create Bitvocation, a Telegram feed that scrapes and curates Bitcoin-only job listings. "It's called the Bitlocation feed on Telegram, which is basically where we scrape all the latest jobs in Bitcoin only, and put them in a handy feed, so anybody who's interested can just subscribe to that."

In its first year, Bitvocation tracked more than 1,700 unique Bitcoin job listings across 46 countries, pulling directly from Bitcoin-focused companies and job platforms. By expanding to Nostr in 2024, the platform is making it even easier for employers to connect with Bitcoiners.

Bitcoin jobs span all industries

For Schuetz, the shift to working in Bitcoin was about more than just employment—it was about aligning her work with her values. "I think the first step is to vote with our money and leave the fiat world," she said. "And yeah, the second step is to also not just invest our money in Bitcoin, but also our energy, our life, our work."

Bitcoin-focused roles span multiple industries, from finance and marketing to customer support and legal. Non-developer roles made up 69% of Bitcoin job listings in 2024, covering everything from product management and graphic design to legal advisory and operations. Meanwhile, software engineers, backend developers, and security experts remain in high demand.

"There are plenty of remote jobs, and in terms of what kind of roles we have, a lot of product managers, design, graphics, design accountants, also legal advice, operations, customer support, community management, the marketing, of course, I mean pretty much everything that you also find in the fiat world."

Job security remains a challenge

Transitioning to Bitcoin-only work comes with risks. "If someone is looking for job security, they should not work in Bitcoin," Schuetz warned. "It is a very new industry… if you have a family to support, or, if job security is really important for you, I would think twice to make the switch."

Bitcoin job openings fluctuate month to month, and while opportunities are growing, the industry remains volatile. In 2024, the top 15 companies accounted for 80% of all developer job listings, signaling consolidation among major players.

To support job seekers, Schuetz launched the Proof of Work (POW) Lab, an inner circle community offering coaching, LinkedIn assistance, and other resources. "This is how we are building our talent pool of passionate Bitcoiners that are really serious about finding work in this way."

How to stand out in the Bitcoin job market

She also advises job seekers to highlight their Bitcoin-related extracurricular activities. "It's much more important to them that you are aligned, value-wise and with the ethos of Bitcoin. Of course, you also need to have the skills for the job. But if there were be two equally skilled candidates, a Bitcoin company will always go with the Bitcoiner. So probably in the interview, you will also talk a lot about your Bitcoin story, more than about your professional history."

While most Bitcoin job opportunities are in the US, Schuetz expects the industry to expand worldwide. Job listings were recorded in more than 40 countries, with North America leading, followed by Europe. "Now we see governments adopting Bitcoin, pension funds, insurances. I mean, it's going to be everywhere. So it will just permeate through all industries at some point, as this gets adopted."

The future of Bitvocation

Her next focus is growing Bitvocation into a full-scale platform. "What I actually our first item on our to do list for this year is to have a proper website, which we still have not managed. There's always been other priorities. Yeah, a website. We also really want to flesh out our services, how we can be of service to employers and to job seekers and other other stakeholders in the industry."

For Bitcoiners looking to turn their passion into a career, finding the right job is still a challenge. But as Bitcoin adoption grows, so too will the opportunities—especially with platforms like Bitvocation helping to bridge the gap.

 

Listen to the whole interview on The Crypto Radio's live player or in Guardians of Bitcoin podcast.