Binance Lays Off 20% of Staff Amidst Regulatory Pressures

According to reports, the cryptocurrency exchange Binance intends to lay off 20% of its staff in June. The company had stated earlier in the year that it would not lay off any employees.

According to the exchange, the decision is not a reduction in force but rather a reallocation of resources.

A spokesperson said, “As we prepare for the next major bull cycle, it has become clear that we must prioritize talent density across the organization to remain agile and dynamic.”

Patrick Hillmann, chief strategy officer of Binance, hinted on Twitter that the reorganization is intended to address mounting regulatory pressures in the crypto space:

“Regulators in almost every major market are also working overtime to provide greater clarity for their expectations of the industry and the asset class more broadly, which is putting even more pressure on orgs to adapt or fall by the wayside.”

According to Hillmann, the exact number of layoffs has not yet been determined. “As with previous exercises, this will be conducted after multiple teams (including HR, Risk, and Operations) complete the audit of talent density,” he continued.

At the time of this writing, Binance’s career page lists 326 available positions across multiple departments and locations.

During the most recent bull market, Binance’s headcount increased from about 3,000 to nearly 8,000, with employees in Europe, the Americas, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.

A spokesperson for Binance stated in March that the company sought to fill over 500 positions by the end of June: “As of today, we are actively hiring for more than 500 roles to fill them by the end of H1 […] We are not planning any layoffs.” In addition, Binance’s CEO, Changpeng Zhao, stated in January that the company planned to increase its headcount by 15% to 30% in 2023.

Crypto community members retweeted Zhao’s previous tweets about crypto exchange layoffs in response to the news.

Binance has been confronted with an unprecedented regulatory environment.

After the closure of Silvergate and Signature Bank, the U.S. branch of the cryptocurrency exchange reportedly struggled to find a new bank partner to serve as a fiat on-ramp and off-ramp for clients.

To maintain its global standing in this environment, the exchange has recently acquired locally regulated entities in Singapore, Thailand, and Japan.