Business Insider Edition
Luno, the crypto exchange owned by Digital Currency Group (DCG), laid off 35% of its workforce on Wednesday, citing harsh market conditions that impacted growth and revenue.
“2022 has been an incredibly tough year for the broader tech industry and in particular the crypto market,” the company said in a statement shared with Insider. “Luno unfortunately hasn’t been immune to this turbulence.”
The London-based firm informed employees of the layoffs during a live-streamed townhall on Wednesday, per CNBC.
“As you will be aware, over the past few months a number of unforeseen and very extreme events have impacted our industry,” Luno told employees, citing “a global economic downturn” coupled with a series of shocks from defunct hedge fund Three Arrows Capital and Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX.
The company maintains that customer funds are safe and the exchange’s operations will continue normally.
The news comes amid a slew of industry layoffs. Coinbase announced a 20% reduction in the company’s workforce earlier this month, Crypto.com is also cutting by 20%, while DCG’s crypto lender Genesis slashed 30% of its staff.
In Asia, crypto exchanges OSL and Amber Group are cutting costs and staff as well, the South China Morning Post reported last week.
Around 29,000 jobs have been cut across the crypto industry since April of last year, according to CoinDesk data.
Luno’s layoffs are another blow to the exchange’s parent company. Genesis filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last week after massive losses from the collapses of FTX and Three Arrows. And DCG’s CoinDesk news site has hired bankers to explore a potential sale, according to reports last week.
Meanwhile, DCG CEO Barry Silbert has been in a public war of words with Gemini’s Cameron Winklevoss as well. The crypto exchange exec alleges that Silbert and his firms owe Gemini customers $900 million.
“He has proven himself unfit to run DCG and unwilling and unable to find a resolution with creditors that is both fair and reasonable,” Winklevoss wrote in an open letter earlier the month. “As a result, Gemini, acting on behalf of 340,000 Earn users, requests that the Board remove Barry Silbert as CEO, effective immediately, and install a new CEO, who will right the wrongs that occurred under Barry’s watch.”
Thanks for signing up for our daily insight on the African economy. We bring you daily editor picks from the best Business Insider news content so you can stay updated on the latest topics and conversations on the African market, leaders, careers and lifestyle. Also join us across all of our other channels – we love to be connected!
© 2023 africa.businessinsider.com
