A new wave of employee restructuring is sweeping across the digital currency world. Binance, the widely recognized crypto exchange, is at the center of this change with plans to cut 20% of its workforce come June.
Despite earlier assurances that there would be no layoffs, the company has framed this move as a shift in resource allocation, rather than a reduction.
A Binance spokesperson explained that the strategy is being driven by the need for a more dense talent pool to navigate the challenges of the next major bull cycle. “To ensure our agility and dynamism, we have identified the need for concentrated expertise within the organization,” they stated.
Workforce retrenchment amid regulatory pressure
The Chief Strategy Officer of Binance, Patrick Hillmann, pointed to the increasing regulatory scrutiny facing the crypto industry as a major influence on this strategic change.
On Twitter, he wrote:
As regulators worldwide provide more clarity on their expectations of the industry, there is added pressure for organizations to adapt or risk getting left behind.
According to Hillmann, the final count of the impending layoffs remains uncertain. It will be determined after a thorough audit of talent density, conducted by several teams including HR, Risk, and Operations.
Notably, despite this reduction, the company’s career page currently advertises 326 vacancies spanning multiple departments and global locations.
Binance is not the only crypto organization adjusting to the shifting landscape. Nansen, a blockchain analytics platform, recently announced a 30% workforce reduction. The CEO, Alex Svanevik, described this as an “extremely difficult decision.”
Scaling back amid market volatility
According to Svanevik, two factors drove the layoffs at Nansen. The company’s rapid initial scaling phase resulted in it spreading itself thin across non-core areas.
Furthermore, the turbulent crypto market over the past year necessitated this strategic contraction. Despite attempts to diversify revenue through institutional and enterprise customers, the company’s operating costs remained relatively high.
He emphasized the company’s commitment to creating a sustainable business while ensuring the employees leaving the company receive severance packages.
Indeed, layoffs are becoming an all-too-familiar reality in the crypto industry, with Coinbase, another leading crypto exchange, announcing a 20% workforce reduction earlier this year.
This move, affecting 950 jobs, was part of an effort to slash operating costs by around 25% during the enduring crypto winter.
Capitalizing on the crypto winter
In contrast to the industry-wide layoffs, some crypto companies are capitalizing on these challenging times. Bitget, a cryptocurrency exchange with over 8 million users across 100 countries, has taken a bullish approach to the bear market.
The company recently established a US$100 million fund to support the development of blockchain, cryptocurrency, and non-fungible token (NFT) projects, with a focus on Asian partners.
Bitget’s Managing Director, Gracy Chen, shared the company’s proactive approach to the current market downturn. Last June, they declared their intention to double their then 500-strong workforce, a goal they’ve achieved. She added:
We currently have about 1,300 employees worldwide with around 100 positions yet to be filled. We see the crypto winter as a golden opportunity for growth, and we aim to amass enough talent to ensure our product’s continued development.
