Anchorage Digital expands USD accounts and SWIFT access through Standard Chartered partnership

Anchorage Digital is expanding its global institutional services through a partnership with Standard Chartered, offering USD accounts and SWIFT access via Anchorage Digital Singapore. This expansion follows the company's acquisition of payments firm Routable on October 6, 2026, to bridge fiat and digital asset rails. These growth initiatives occur alongside cost-cutting measures, as Anchorage Digital reportedly laid off 17% of its workforce (about 68 employees) amid a broader 2026 crypto market downturn, despite securing a $100 million investment from Tether earlier in the year.

Partnership with Standard Chartered

• ▪Eligible clients onboarded through Anchorage Digital Singapore can hold US dollars, send and receive international wires, and access 24/7 settlement with Standard Chartered Singapore counterparties.
• ▪Anchorage Digital partnered with Standard Chartered to expand banking services, including USD accounts and SWIFT payment access, for international institutional clients.

Acquisition of Routable

• ▪Anchorage Digital acquired payments company Routable on October 6, 2026, to extend its fiat and digital asset infrastructure to technology platforms and Fortune 500 companies.
• ▪Routable, founded in 2017, helps businesses onboard payees, automate compliance, and orchestrate high-volume global payouts.

Workforce reduction at Anchorage Digital

• ▪Anchorage Digital CEO Nathan McCauley reportedly informed employees of the workforce reduction during the week of September 28, 2026.
• ▪The workforce reduction at Anchorage Digital occurred against a prolonged downturn in cryptocurrency markets, though Bitcoin briefly recovered above $87,000 on October 2, 2026.
• ▪Anchorage Digital reportedly cut 17% of its workforce, which would affect approximately 68 positions based on its global headcount of about 400 employees.

Strategic investment from Tether

• ▪Tether's strategic investment in Anchorage Digital enabled an employee tender offer to pay employees, indicating the subsequent layoffs were for expense reduction rather than cash desperation.
• ▪Tether Investments made a $100 million strategic equity investment in Anchorage Digital on February 5, 2026, valuing the company at $4.2 billion.

Crypto labor market downturn

• ▪Tiger Research reported that new job listings on leading crypto job portals declined by approximately 80% year-over-year in January 2026.
• ▪The broader crypto labor market in 2026 saw at least 7,411 job cuts across 60 companies, including 4,000 cuts at Block in February 2026.

Debatable claims

• ▪Anchorage Digital is justified in cutting staff despite its $4.2 billion valuation
• ▪Crypto institutions should integrate traditional banking rails to attract institutional clients