Kraken Announces More Layoffs As Part Of Restructuring Strategy

On Wednesday, Kraken announced it will be laying off 15% of its workforce, equating to 400 jobs, as part of a corporate restructuring that includes a leadership change. Arjun Sethi has been appointed co-CEO alongside Dave Ripley, who took over after the founder, Jesse Powell, gave up the position in 2023.

As part of its efforts to work alongside regulatory authorities, Kraken previously hinted at potentially delisting the USDT stablecoin. Since then though, the crypto exchange has reassured users that it does not intend to remove USDT in Europe and will continue adhering to all legal obligations.

Key Departures

The layoffs will see significant departures as far as the leadership team is concerned, notably Chief Operating Officer Gilles BianRosa and Chief Technology Officer Vishnu Patankar. The new co-CEOs explained that streamlining operations is aimed at creating a more agile and competitive organization, with the goal of becoming the largest cryptocurrency platform globally.

In a blog post, they stated that Kraken remains fully committed to making organizational discipline decisions in order to effectively eliminate layers while simultaneously improving on pre-existing features and services and adding new ones.

A Leaner Approach

Kraken has faced various challenges, including divisive internal policies under Powell, which led to a culture clash within the company and a federal investigation for potential sanction violations, resulting in his resignation later that year. In 2022, Kraken also cut 30% of its staff following the collapse of the FTX exchange, marking this latest round of layoffs as its second major cut in under two years.

Despite a partial recovery in the cryptocurrency market and Bitcoin (BTC) reaching new highs this year, Kraken is opting for a leaner approach. The company reported over $1 billion in net revenue, but the co-CEOs believe that a simplified management structure will allow employees to prioritize building over managing.