“Unfortunately, negative influences on the financial markets have continued and we have exhausted preferable options for bringing costs in line with demand.”
Crypto exchange Kraken cut 30% of its global workforce to weather the downturn in the crypto market.
The announcement came a few weeks after Jesse Powell stepped down as the CEO of Kraken.
According to its blog post, Kraken estimated the number of employees it has laid off to be around 1,100. The company claimed that it will pay 16 weeks' worth of base salary and performance bonuses to its departing employees.
Rough day at @krakenfx. Headcount rolled back 12 mos. Macro was already tough and we held out but recent industry woes diminished near-term optimism about a crypto rebound. Better positioned now. Glad we were able to take good care of our former colleagues. Been a privilege. https://t.co/xfwShapS2N
— Jesse Powell (@jespow) November 30, 2022
Kraken blamed the lower trading volume and decrease in clients due to the crypto winter for this layoff. With this layoff, the headcount at Kraken will return to where it was a year ago.
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Jesse Powell noted,
“I’m confident the steps we are taking today will ensure we can continue to deliver on our mission which the world needs now more than ever before. I remain extremely bullish on crypto and Kraken.”
In June, the exchange revealed its plans to hire over 500 employees. Interestingly, the crypto winter had set in a few months before Kraken made the announcement.
Kraken is not the only firm to lay off its employees due to unfavorable market conditions. Since June, several firms, including Coinbase, Genesis, and Crypto.com, have slashed a fraction of their workforce to brave the crypto winter.
