Just In: Kraken To Layoff 30% Of Employees Amid Crypto Market Turmoil

Kraken layoff news: U.S. based crypto exchange Kraken announced it is reducing its global workforce by around 30%. The exchange cited its plans to adapt to the current market conditions in the crypto market. The move is set to affect around 1,100 employees across the world. The company made the announcement in a statement, describing the decision as “one of the hardest at Kraken to date.”

Also Read: Here’s Why Ethereum (ETH) Price Can Rally 30% In Next Three Weeks

Slow Down In Hiring

Kraken said the latest layoff decision will effectively take its team size back to the employee count it had an year ago. In the statement, Jesse Powell, cofounder and CEO of the company, said he remains “extremely bullish” on crypto. The company cited macroeconomic and geopolitical reasons for lower trading volumes. The development comes at the back of bankruptcy filing by FTX and BlockFi in quick succession.

“Since the start of this year, macroeconomic and geopolitical factors have weighed on financial markets. This resulted in significantly lower trading volumes and fewer client sign-ups. We responded by slowing hiring efforts and avoiding large marketing commitments.”

Earlier, the London High Court issued a judgment ordering several exchanges, including Kraken and Binance, to reveal data about stolen funds. The data pertains to a 2020 incident involving funds stolen from a UK-based crypto exchange.

Also Read: Blackrock CEO Larry Fink Says FTX Failed Due To FTT Token

More Layoffs To Come Amid Worsening Crypto Market?

Earlier, Candy Digital, a sports and entertainment NFT start-up, laid off around 33% of its workforce. Founded in 2021, the company’s founding team includes investor Gary Vaynerchuk. Recently, big tech companies Meta and Twitter also reduced huge chunk of their employee count as part of cost cutting measures. It remains to be seen if more crypto companies will resort to cost cutting with layoffs.