Nikolas Sargeant
Cryptocurrency exchange Kraken has been quietly reducing its workforce over recent months, cutting positions across multiple departments as it streamlines operations in preparation for a possible U.S. public listing as early as next year.
According to a Friday report from CoinDesk, the staffing reductions affect "hundreds of staffers" across the organization.
A Kraken spokesperson confirmed the changes, stating: "We continuously evaluate our workforce to ensure it aligns with our strategic priorities. We're approaching this with discipline and intention, making the difficult decision to eliminate certain roles and consolidate teams where redundancies exist, while continuing to hire in key areas of the business."
Ongoing Workforce Reductions Under New Leadership
This latest round of cuts follows a more significant restructuring in October when Kraken reduced its workforce by 15%, eliminating approximately 400 positions. That reduction included the departure of key executives including Chief Operating Officer Gilles BianRosa and Chief Technology Officer Vishnu Patankar.
The October changes coincided with the appointment of veteran tech investor Arjun Sethi as co-chief executive alongside Dave Ripley. Since Sethi joined the leadership team, insiders describe an ongoing "rolling program" of layoffs continuing across the company. While the exact number of recent job cuts remains unconfirmed, the company is reportedly still hiring selectively in areas deemed critical to its strategic roadmap.
Ripley had assumed the CEO position in 2023 after founder Jesse Powell stepped down amid tensions with employees over company culture and leadership style.
Public Listing Plans Accelerate as Regulatory Environment Shifts
Kraken's operational streamlining coincides with renewed efforts to access capital markets. The exchange is reportedly in early discussions to raise up to $1 billion in debt financing, with Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase leading those talks. According to Bloomberg, the company could move forward with a public listing as early as the first quarter of 2025.
The company had previously considered going public, but regulatory uncertainty during the Biden administration delayed these plans. With Donald Trump returning to office and promising more business-friendly policies toward digital assets, Kraken and several other cryptocurrency firms are revisiting their public listing strategies as the regulatory climate appears to be shifting in Washington.
