a16z-Backed Crypto Exchange CoinSwitch Dismisses 7% of its Workforce (Report)

CoinSwitch – an Indian cryptocurrency exchange backed by the financial giant Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) – has reportedly trimmed its team by 44 people, representing 7% of the total workforce.

Another local digital asset organization that recently announced similar amendments is CoinDCX, which laid off 12% of its employees.

What is the Reason?

According to a BQ Prime coverage, CoinSwitch has decided to reduce its team due to the decreasing level of customer activity. A spokesperson of the platform explained in detail:

“We continuously evaluate our business to stay competitive, prioritizing innovation, value, and service for our customers. To that end, we right-sized our customer support team to align with the present volume of customer queries on our platform.”

A person familiar with the matter noted that clients had been much more intrigued during the bull market in 2021, whereas the prolonged crypto winter has shrunk that enthusiasm, making the dismissals necessary.

However, the team behind CoinSwitch assured that it will closely follow the situation in the cryptocurrency sector and welcome back the impacted staff if trading volumes start to grow again.

The exchange made the headlines last summer when Indian law enforcement agents raided its offices and the residences of its directors as part of a broad money-laundering investigation. 

CoinSwitch’s CEO Ashish Singhal was quick to refute the speculation that his firm has been involved in illegal financial operations:

“Enforcement Directorate – Bengaluru has been engaged with us with respect to the functioning of our crypto platforms/exchanges. We are fully cooperating with them… Our engagement with the Enforcement Directorate – Bengaluru was NOT related to any money laundering inquiry under PMLA, as reported in some news articles.”

A Drop in the Ocean of Layoffs

India’s second crypto unicorn – CoinSwitch – is hardly the only digital asset exchange that fired staff due to setbacks caused by the bear market. Industry leaders like Coinbase, Crypto.com, Gemini, Huobi, Bybit, BitMEX, KuCoin, and many more are part of the lengthy list.

As CryptoPotato reported last week, the Indian crypto exchange CoinDCX was among the latest to join the club. The entity, backed by Coinbase Ventures, dismissed 71 employees, representing 12% of its total workforce. The founders said the overall downtrend in the industry has made several specific positions unnecessary:

“We’ve tried our utmost to explore various alternatives, but current market realities compel us to take some tough decisions. We believe that this is the right thing to do for the business. We understand the emotional toll of this decision, and we bear its weight, both in responsibility and in emotion.”