At least 2,900 people from 14 various crypto companies were laid off in the first month of 2023 as a result of financial constraints faced by the industry.
The most latest company to allegedly start terminating staff is the provider of crypto infrastructure Prime Trust, which reportedly reduced its employee numbers by a third.
Prime employed 312 employees registered on LinkedIn as of the time of writing, therefore the cut would equate to an expected 100 staff cutbacks.
Other notable layoffs over the previous few days include the firing of about 100 staff from the crypto exchange Gemini and the suspension of 30 workers from the crypto platform Matrixport.
The cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase initiated the largest employment cut in January when it reduced its headcount by around 950 employees on January 10.
The reductions at its rival exchanges Crypto.com, Luno, and Huobi were followed by cuts to about 500, 330, and 320 personnel, respectively.
The embattled crypto conglomerate Digital Currency Group (DCG) and its subsidiary underwent significant layoffs, sacking 485 workers in January only as the company explores a financial crisis.
The DCG-owned Luno experienced the largest job losses, followed by the parent company DCG with 66 layoffs, Genesis, a subsidiary lending platform, with 63 job losses, and HQ Digital, an asset management company that closed its doors and affected 26 employment.
The list was completed by the sackings of 200 employees from cryptocurrency bank Silvergate, 110 workers from the Blockchain.com exchange, and 96 employees from MetaMask’s parent company ConsenSys.
Meanwhile, 20 employees were let go from SuperRare, a nonfungible token (NFT) exchange.
These layoffs occurred despite Bitcoin’s (BTC) stellar performance in the month, which saw it approach nearly $25,000 due to growing institutional demand.
However, the widespread layoffs in the cryptocurrency industry were not unique. Just four businesses—Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and Salesforce—fired over 48,000 employees in January alone.
While some might predict even more doom, cryptocurrency hedge fund Pantera Capital asserts that now is the best moment to launch a blockchain business since bear markets offer “less noise and distraction from creating.”
Also read: How Stagflation Is Impacting The Crypto Markets?
Crypto Companies Recruitment Executives Share The Safest Employment
Not all departments, meanwhile, have experienced the same level of reductions.
SAFU: Senior-level engineering and technology
The most sought-after positions, by a “large margin,” are in the technical and engineering fields, even in downturns, according to Rob Paone, founder, and CEO of the cryptocurrency recruitment agency Proof of Talent.
Although there is no longer a “bidding war type scenario” for this personnel, he claimed that his company is still experiencing “high demand” for these positions and that the salaries are still “extremely competitive.”
Mid-level positions frequently get cut during a down market, but senior duties frequently “double or quadruple,” according to Johncy Agregado, director of cryptocurrency employment agency CapMan Consulting.
Jobs such as chief technology officer and chief information security officer, for example, are usually harmless, in Agregado’s opinion, because their holders are responsible for keeping the business’ operations flexible and “everything in order” when the market shifts.
Not SAFU: Non-mission critical
However, Paone claimed that positions in customer support, compliance, and anything “non-revenue or product generating” are typically slashed first by crypto enterprises.
Although every business approaches a bear market uniquely, investor and podcaster Anthony Pompliano, who also founded the bitcoin staffing firm Inflection Points, said he has generally seen the non-mission important jobs hit hardest by layoffs.
According to Pompliano, these responsibilities include any positions outside of management, marketing, engineering, operations, and customer support.
As a result of the protracted bear market, Pompliano claimed that he had “several reports” of remuneration freezes and reductions in minor crypto companies.
The crypto enterprises forced to make “deeper cutbacks” have also had to shrink their engineering and product teams, Paone continued, adding that in some circumstances, even individuals in technical roles might not be able to completely avoid job layoffs.
Paone argued that despite the fact that layoffs in the crypto companies have been well-publicised, professionals have not decided to leave the field.
Also read: Three Most Anticipated ICOs And Cryptocurrency Sales In 2023
