Brevan Howard’s crypto division CEO Gautam Sharma departs after five years

Gautam Sharma, the CEO of alternative investment management company Brevan Howard’s digital assets division, is reportedly leaving after five years. The departure could spell changes for the division, which has grown significantly in the past few years and manages $2 billion in assets.

According to a Bloomberg report on Wednesday, Brevan Howard has no plans to fill the role. Meanwhile, the company in May promoted Chris Rayner-Cook, former head of global trading and financing at Coinbase, as the digital assets division’s chief investment officer.

Brevan Howard’s digital asset division has over 10 portfolio managers, 13 investment professionals and 15 blockchain engineers.

According to his LinkedIn profile, Sharma started at Brevan Howard as the head of principal investments. He reportedly worked with the company’s co-founder, Alan Howard, to oversee his family’s crypto and digital asset investments. Previously, Sharma was a chief operating officer at Steadview Capital and held various positions at McKinsey.

Cointelegraph contacted Brevan Howard, but the company declined to comment. Sharma has not responded as of this writing.

Brevan Howard is a hedge fund based in Jersey with offices in London, Geneva, New York and Hong Kong, among other locations. It has over 1,000 team members and managed over $34 billion in assets as of April 2025.

The company set up its digital division in September 2021. The funds managed by the division gained 51.3% in 2024 as the macro environment for crypto improved and the market experienced significant tailwinds.

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Senior positions open in the crypto industry

Hiring has picked up in the crypto industry over the past month. According to LinkedIn job postings and other sources, traditional finance institutions are hiring for a wave of senior positions. The moves are coming amid increased regulatory clarity for Web3 worldwide.

Cointelegraph has reported that the highest-paying jobs in crypto cover a variety of specialities. Quants, often tied to decentralized finance, are the highest paying, while legal and chief operating officers receive high base salaries combined with equity. Influencers, too, see high incomes but come with risk.

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