Why partnership frameworks fail for Bitcoin companies
Most partnership frameworks assume you’re working with established categories and known business models.
Bitcoin breaks these assumptions.
Traditional partnership plays:
- Channel partnerships require standardized pricing and packaging
- Integration partnerships assume stable APIs and predictable roadmaps
- Co-marketing partnerships need clear ICP overlap
- Reseller partnerships want proven deal velocity
Bitcoin companies often can’t deliver on these prerequisites because:
Categories are still forming — Is your product custody? Infrastructure? Payments? All three?
Business models are evolving — SaaS pricing doesn’t work when you’re dealing with network effects and transaction economics
Regulatory uncertainty — Partners don’t want to commit when regulatory landscape is unclear
Education burden — Partners need to educate their teams, who need to educate customers
Long sales cycles — Traditional partnership ROI calculations break when deals take 12-18 months
The partnerships that work in Bitcoin are less formal and more collaborative. Joint education initiatives. Technical integrations with flexible commercial terms. Strategic relationships built on shared vision rather than forecasted revenue.
This requires different partnership skills than traditional BD. Less focus on contracts and forecasts, more focus on technical depth and ecosystem building.
Related to thoughts on Bitcoin sales cycles and go-to-market strategy.