Crypto Industry Cuts Jobs Despite Bitcoin Highs

Posted on January 31, 2023
News
By Mark Otto
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Significant crises and unpleasant events negatively impacted Bitcoin and other crypto asset prices in 2022. Some notable events include the collapse of Terra and its ecosystem, the implosion of the FTX exchange, and the spreading of contagions that followed them. However, early 2023 brought a new dawn in the industry. Most crypto tokens rose in […][...]

However, early 2023 brought a new dawn in the industry. Most crypto tokens rose in value, with Bitcoin closing the market at $23K from January 25 till the 30th.

But amid the price recovery, the tension of the 2022 bear market is still lingering. As a result, some employees in the industry are losing their jobs. According to a recent report, almost 3,000 crypto employees lost their jobs in January 2023.

Staff Reduction Spiked Across Several Crypto Firms

There have been several reports on staff reduction across some crypto-related firms. About 14 different crypto companies have laid off 2,900 employees this January. Most crypto firms have been cutting operational costs since the beginning of 2023.

On January 23, The Information reported that a crypto exchange Gemini was laying off some staff. According to the report, the exchange cut down its employees by 10%, making it the third round within the past eight months.

Another report from Bloomberg on January 27 noted that Matrixport, a crypto platform, also embarked on a staff reduction exercise. The firm cut down its staff strength by 10%, representing 30 staff primarily from its marketing department.

In the same report, the prominent crypto billionaire Jihan Wu laid off staff from his company. Also, two executives were reported to have left Wu’s firm.

The recent staff reduction report is from Prime Trust, a crypto infrastructure provider. A Twitter post from BitArchive indicated that Prime Trust has laid off one-third of its employees. The firm cited the impact of the pandemic as a trigger to its quest to cut operational costs.

Other crypto firms have been towing the same trend in staff reduction, with Coinbase having the most significant staff reduction made this January. In its latest round of layoffs, the crypto exchange reportedly laid off 950 employees, representing 20% of its workforce.

Also, Crypto.com, Huobi, and Luno crypto exchanges laid off about 500, 320, and 300 staff this year. These represent 20%, 20%, and 35% of their respective workforces.

Outside the crypto industry, some giant and hi-tech companies have laid off some of their staff this January. According to the report, Microsoft, Google, Salesforce, and Amazon dismissed 4,800 from their employment list. On its own, Spotify reduced its workforce by 6% this January.

Bitcoin Gained Over 38% In 2023

The price of Bitcoin has shown impressive performance at the beginning of 2023. Recall that the primary crypto asset dropped drastically following the crisis surrounding the implosion of the FTX exchange. In Nov 2022, the price of BTC dipped to the $15,000 region.

However, the beginning of January came with a different trend for Bitcoin as the token experienced the presence of the bulls.

The leading crypto started its upward trend from $16,547.91 on January 1, 2023, to $23,774.65 early January 30, 2023, before closing the market the same day at $22,840.14 depicting a loss.