Coinbase Global Inc. is firing about 950 employees, or about 20% of its workforce, as the worsening crypto slump spurs another round of layoffs at the biggest US digital-asset exchange.
Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Brian Armstrong announced the job reductions in a blog post Tuesday, saying the steps were needed to weather the industry downturn.
In June, Coinbase announced it would lay off 18% of its workforce, the equivalent of roughly 1,200 employees. It eliminated another 60 positions in November. It will now shut down several projects.
Coinbase expects to book $149 million to $163 million of restructuring charges, according to a statement on Tuesday. The overhaul will be “substantially complete” by the end of the second quarter, it said. As a result, adjusted EBITDA for the full year ended Dec. 31 is expected to be around negative $500 million.
Crypto’s bear market is entering its second year, and the industry has suffered a series of meltdowns that hurt its outlook, most lately the bankruptcy of rival exchange FTX. With revenues falling and profits evaporating, companies across the sector have resorted to steep cost cuts in past months.
Coinbase’s shares tumbled 86% last year, dropping more than the market bellwether Bitcoin, which slumped 64%. The stock fell about 2.3% before the start of regular trading in the US on Tuesday.
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