Crypto exchange Kraken lays off 1,100 employees

Kraken, one of the world’s largest crypto exchanges, is laying off about 30% of its workforce, or 1,100 people, “in order to adapt to current market conditions,” co-founder and CEO Jesse Powell said Wednesday. .

powell wrote in a blog post that slowing growth, caused by “macroeconomic and geopolitical factors”, had dampened customer demand, reduced transaction volumes and reduced registrations.

“We had to grow rapidly, more than triple our headcount in order to provide these customers with the quality and service they expect from us,” Powell said. “This reduction brings our team size back to what it was just 12 months ago.”

“I remain extremely bullish on crypto and Kraken,” Powell added.

Crypto exchanges have been rocked by pullbacks and regulatory scrutiny after FTX’s implosion. Sam Bankman-Fried crypto empire filed for bankruptcy on November 28 and laid off several hundred employees as part of the restructuring process.

Barry Silbert’s Digital Currency Group laid off about 13% of its staff in November. Crypto.com laid off 2,000 employees in October.

Kraken said it would offer 16 weeks of severance pay and extend the vesting window for affected employees.

Correction: This story has been updated to reflect that Kraken has announced that it is laying off 1,100 workers. A previous title gave an incorrect number.