Australian exchange Swyftx cuts 21% of staff amid the decline of the crypto market

The platform’s executives cited inflation, recession, and the bear cycle as the main reasons for lay-offs

19.08.2022 - 12:50

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What’s new? Australian cryptocurrency exchange Swyftx has cut its staff by 21% to optimize costs. According to a note from CEOs Alex Harper and Ryan Parsons dated August 17, 74 employees were forced to quit. In their decision, the executives cited an uncertain business environment due to more than 20 years of the record inflation rate, rising interest rates, high volatility of markets across all asset classes, and the possibility of a global recession.

Statement on the Swyftx website

What else does the note say? Harper and Parsons said that the layoffs are a measure of last resort and in no way reflects the job skills of the laid-off employees. According to them, the main priority is the well-being and future of each of the laid-off team members. Harper and Parsons promised to do all they can to support them during this difficult time.

Each laid-off employee will be able to receive individual consultations, as well as career support to find a new job. Swyftx will also eliminate the minimum seniority requirement for access to employee stock ownership (ESOP) and, in addition, accelerate the vesting period.

Swyftx is one of Australia’s leading crypto exchanges, offering to trade more than 320 digital assets. The platform was founded by Alex Harper and Angus Goldman in 2019 and is based in Brisbane. The exchange offers a wide range of deposit methods, visual portfolio management features, and no fees for withdrawing Australian dollars to a bank account.

Many companies have cut employees amid the market downturn. For example, crypto exchanges Gemini, Coinbase, and Huobi laid off 10, 18, and 30% of employees, respectively. The Bybit exchange cuts 20-30% of staff, and the OpenSea NFT marketplace — 20%. Online broker Robinhood reduced its staff by 23%, and trading platform Bitpanda by more than 70%.

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