Singapore crypto companies lead in job cuts: What does it mean for the market?
In recent years, the cryptocurrency industry has experienced a boom, with many new companies emerging and existing ones expanding rapidly. However, this growth has been accompanied by significant market volatility, regulatory challenges, and other factors that have impacted the industry. One of the consequences of these challenges has been the rise of layoffs in the crypto sector, particularly in Singapore.
According to data from Bitcoin Casinos released last month, Singapore took the lead among major cities in terms of the highest number of cryptocurrency layoffs between February 2022 and February 2023, reported The Business Times.
Within the investigated period, the report collated data from layoffs.fyi and other public reports to reveal that Singapore experienced 3,719 crypto layoffs, as disclosed.
Singapore outperformed other major cities, including San Francisco (Bay Area), where FTX is headquartered, and New York, in terms of the number of crypto layoffs. San Francisco (Bay Area) recorded 3,454 layoffs, while New York had 1,754, both of which were lower than Singapore's figure.
According to Liam Solomon, Growth Manager at Bitcoin Casinos, although the layoffs suggest a challenging period in the short term, most companies are simply reverting to their pre-boom size.
“As with other startups, businesses and entities made from shaky foundations aren’t likely to succeed. Fad offerings and trendy job roles will be shed by companies, but the useful, valuable roles within crypto will become even more important. Skills in marketing, tech, UX, accounting and even compliance are likely to grow in demand – so workers unsure of their future would be smart to look into more ‘traditional’ roles if they wish to continue their crypto careers,” added Solomon.
The crypto industry faced a challenging year in 2021, which was dubbed "crypto winter" due to the decline in major cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, which dropped below $16,000 after peaking at around $69,000.
After the sharp drop in cryptocurrency value, some of the biggest players in the crypto industry, including FTX, 3AC, and Terraform Labs, which issued TerraUSD tokens that reached a market cap of $25 billion at its peak, were compelled to undergo liquidation one after the other.
Although Bitcoin has recovered to trade slightly above $27,000, it is difficult to confirm that the crypto winter has come to an end.