Singapore-based Crypto.com lays off 12% of staff, third cut in four years
[SINGAPORE] Singapore-headquartered cryptocurrency exchange Crypto.com has laid off around 12 per cent of its global workforce, or 180 employees, as part of a strategic restructuring exercise, The Straits Times has learnt.
In an e-mail to affected employees, the firm’s human resources (HR) department said that the cuts are part of its reorganisation. No other details were given in the email sent on the morning of Thursday (Mar 19) except that the firm is pivoting “towards key business initiatives”.
Crypto.com reported that it had more than 100,000,000 registered users in 2024. Its global headcount was more than 1,500 before the layoff, based on information from its website. It is not known how many employees in Singapore are affected.
One employee based in Singapore, who declined to be named, told ST she found out about the move after she was locked out of the company’s communication platform Slack in the morning.
During a call on the afternoon of Mar 19, a HR representative said that 10 per cent of the company’s global workforce has been laid off, but the number varies across departments.
“The company has grown to the point where our structure has become quite layered and siloed, which has slowed us down and created inefficiencies,” said a senior executive of the firm, who was also on the call.
Navigate Asia in
a new global order
Get the insights delivered to your inbox.
“At the same time, we’re kind of at this critical point where we have to find ways to lean into and leverage all the new tooling and platforms and technologies that have become available.”
ST understands that the hardest hit departments include growth and customer relationship management. More than half of the department’s 20-strong team in Singapore have been laid off.
When contacted, Crypto.com said: “We are joining the list of companies integrating enterprise-wide AI (artificial intelligence). As we continue to prioritise resources around key growth areas and drive efficiencies across our business, we reduced our workforce by approximately 12 percent.”
The firm added that all impacted team members have been notified and are receiving resources to support their transition.
The company was founded in Hong Kong in 2016, with offices in countries such as Singapore, France, and the US.
It has undergone several rounds of job cuts in the last five years. In 2022, it laid off five per cent of its workforce to weather a macro economic downturn amid rising interest rates. This equates to 260 affected jobs out of a 5,000 people-strong team.
The collapse of Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX later in 2022 caused the company to further reduce its workforce by 20 per cent in 2023. THE STRAITS TIMES
Decoding Asia newsletter: your guide to navigating Asia in a new global order. Sign up here to get Decoding Asia newsletter. Delivered to your inbox. Free.
