Coinbase job postings decline 73% as crypto bear market deepens

US-based cryptocurrency exchange, Coinbase, has had a 73% decline in the number of job postings that the platform makes. According to data analytics platform GlobalData, the number of new job postings made across various recruitment platforms by Coinbase declined from 730 new roles in January this year, to 197 in May.

The numbers come as Coinbase has already announced that it would be reducing its workforce by about 18% – amounting to a reduction of around 1,100 jobs. The company’s chief, Brian Armstrong, said in a memo to its employees last week that it had grown “too quickly” – and is now set to take a significant step back.

Detailing the impact of the impending ‘crypto winter’, Armstrong explained that the exchange has lived through four such phases – periods of severe decline in the global cryptocurrency market. “In past crypto winters, trading revenue – our largest revenue source – has declined significantly,” he added.

This, Armstrong explained, now means that the company is on a trajectory to manage and handle costs in a tighter fashion, and also acknowledged that Coinbase “over hired” in order to keep up with its growth pace of around 200% year on year over the past two years.

Coinbase’s decline in new job postings, as detailed by GlobalData, is in line with what Armstrong said on June 14. His statement said, “We have now exceeded the limit of how many new employees we can integrate while growing our productivity. For the past few months, adding new employees has made us less efficient, not more.”

Interestingly, though, the number of job listings at Coinbase that remain open right now have increased over the past five months – growing from 559 listings in January this year to 679 in April, before declining slightly in May. At the same time, GlobalData says Coinbase has been steadily closing new job postings over the past five months, showcasing a clear trend of the bear crypto market right now.

Coinbase is not the only firm that is downsizing. Gemini Trust, run by the Winklevoss twins, has already announced a reduction of workforce by about 10%. BlockFi, a crypto exchange and financial tools platform, is reducing its employee count by about 20%, while crypto exchange Crypto.com is also cutting down 5% of its workforce.

However, Indian crypto exchanges and companies have held steadfast that they would not be reducing jobs – although hiring pace has taken a hit. A Mint report from June 18 noted that crypto trading volumes in India have seen sharp declines of over 40% already – and a further decline in the coming months could put Indian crypto firms in trouble.