Ledger lays off 12% of staff, citing ‘macroeconomic headwinds’

Pascal Gauthier, CEO and chair of hardware crypto wallet manufacturer Ledger, has announced the firm will be reducing its staff by 12%.

In an Oct. 5 blog post, Gauthier said the staff cuts had been made “for the longevity of the business,” citing the 2022 bear market and the collapse of firms including FTX and Voyager Digital. Based on data from LinkedIn, Ledger may have had around 734 employees at the time of publication, suggesting that roughly 88 people may have lost their jobs.

“Macroeconomic headwinds are limiting our ability to generate revenue, and in response to the current market conditions and business realities, we must reduce roles across the global business,” said the CEO. “Sadly, this means we are making the difficult decision to reduce 12% of the roles at Ledger.”

The announcement came roughly seven months after Ledger raised more than $109 million in a funding round, giving the firm a $1.4 billion valuation. In August, Ledger integrated its Live software with PayPal, allowing United States residents with verified accounts on the payment app to buy cryptocurrencies.

Related: Crypto community reacts to Ledger wallet’s secret recovery phrase service

Many crypto firms have announced similar staff cuts amid an uncertain market and changes to the U.S. regulatory environment. In September, Binance.US president and CEO Brian Shroder left the firm amid roughly 100 employees being cut. Nansen, Coinbase, Huobi and Crypto.com have all also said they would have layoffs in 2023.

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