Hassan Maishera
TLDR;
- Cryptocurrency bank Anchorage Digital has cut 20% of its staff.
- The company cites regulatory uncertainty and market volatility as the reason behind this decision.
Anchorage Digital Trims Its Workforce
Anchorage Digital, the only federally chartered crypto bank in the United States, announced on Tuesday that it would lay off 20% of its staff. The company cites regulatory uncertainty in the US as the major reason why it is making this decision.
The bank also added that macroeconomic challenges and the current market volatility in the crypto space are the other contributing factors. In a statement on Tuesday, the bank said;
"The strategic adjustments we are undertaking have been developed over the course of a several months-long review process.”
Anchorage Digital added that it had laid off 75 employees already. Although its business was growing, the bank cited macroeconomic, market, and regulatory challenges affecting its business and the broader cryptocurrency industry.
This latest development comes a few days after regulators took control of crypto-friendly Signature Bank and Silicon Valley Bank amid runs on deposits and questions about their solvency.
Crypto-friendly Silvergate Bank also voluntarily liquidated its assets a few days ago. Anchorage Digital assured its customers that there would be no disruption to their services despite the staff layoff.
The bank raised $350 million in a Series D funding round led by KKR in 2021, taking its valuation to $3 billion. Some of the other prominent investors include Goldman Sachs, BlackRock, PayPal Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, Alameda Research, Apollo credit funds, Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC, GoldenTree Asset Management, Wellington Management and private equity firm Thoma Bravo.
