Tyler Winklevoss and Cameron Winklevoss (LR), founders of crypto exchange Gemini, on stage at the Bitcoin Convention 2021 in Miami, Florida.
Joe Raedle Getty Images
Crypto exchange Gemini will reduce its head count by 10%, a spokesperson told CNBC on Monday.
It is at least the third round of cuts in less than a year for Gemini, which was co-founded by the twins Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, and unlike many of its peers, subject to New York banking regulation.
Gemini will have 1,000 employees by November 2022, according to PitchBook data, indicating about 100 people will lose their positions. TechCrunch reported that Gemini had previously cut its headcount by 7% in July 2022, after a 10% layoff the previous month.
Other crypto companies like Crypto.com, CoinbaseKraken, and Genesis have eliminated positions since November 11, the day when crypto exchange Sam Bankman-Fried FTX filed for bankruptcy. In early January, Coinbase cut 20% of its workforce in a major round of job cuts in an effort to conserve cash during the crypto market downturn.
“It is our hope to avoid further reductions after this summer, however, the persistent negative macroeconomic situation and the unprecedented fraud perpetrated by bad actors in our industry have left us with no other choice but to revise our outlook and reduce the head count,” wrote Cameron Winklevoss. in an internal message taken by The Information.
Gemini has been fighting a battle over customer funds in recent weeks. The exchange is also facing legal battles with the Securities and Exchange Commission over unregistered offers and sales of securities related to its partnership with Barry Silbert’s bankrupt firm, Genesis.
Gemini has been embroiled in an intense dispute with Silbert’s Genesis Trading, a crypto lending company that generates rich returns for Gemini clients through Gemini’s high-yield lending product, known as Gemini Earn.
The relationship soured when FTX filed for bankruptcy. Genesis then froze its debt and redeemed it shortly after, leaving Gemini customers short about $900 million. The chain of failures also forced the Gemini Earn product to quickly follow its own temporary suspension.
In the months since the Earn product was discontinued, Gemini’s 340,000 customers have grown increasingly frustrated. Some have banded together in a class action lawsuit against the exchange.
Genesis filed for bankruptcy protection on Jan. 19. The filing lists the 50 largest unsecured creditors, with Gemini topping the list at $765.9 million — more than $300 million more than the next creditor.
