- 570 employees at crypto companies were let go last month, down from almost 2,900 in January
- Polygon Labs and Dapper Labs were on the higher end of layoffs in February
Layoffs in the crypto industry slowed down considerably in February compared to the previous month. 570 employees at crypto companies were let go last month, down from almost 2,900 in January 2023 according to data from CoinTelegraph.
Digital asset, blockchain analytics firms most affected
In February, the majority of job cuts impacted digital asset platforms, blockchain analytics firms, and software and blockchain development companies. Among the most recent layoffs were Messari and Elliptic, both crypto analytics firms, which cut 15% and 10% of employees respectively.
Earlier this month, leading blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis reported they had laid off around 5% of their workforce, who worked mainly in sales.
Crypto remains resilient
Crypto firm recruiter Neil Dundon told CoinTelegraph:
The spike in layoffs is a macro event not just in Web3 but tech in general, fueled by fears of an extended recession. Web3 is always going to be hit to a harder degree, at least until Bitcoin decouples from the stock market. There may also be some fears of tougher regulations in Web3 adding to the spike. But, as always, crypto is resilient.
Part of a broader trend
According to data from Layoffs.fyi, 129 tech companies laid off a total of 24,572 employees last month. The macro trend runs parallel to the micro one. In January, 268 tech companies laid off 84,414 staff.
Polygon and Dapper with the most cuts
Polygon Labs and Dapper Labs were on the higher end of layoffs in February. Both companies let around a fifth of their employees go due to internal restructuring.
Immutable, who is behind an Ethereum layer-2 blockchain protocol like Polygon, reduced its headcount by more than 10% during the month as well.
Also last month, payments processor Affirm announced they were closing their crypto program against the backdrop of the rather hefty staff cut of 19%.
