Coinbase Cuts Support Staff Amid Cryptocurrency Rout

• Coinbase Cuts Support Staff Amid Cryptocurrency Rout

The world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange company, Coinbase, has dismissed a number of its remote customer support staff, according to reports.

While the California based company confirmed the layoff, the number of employees cut out was not made known, however, sources familiar with the situation said they were up to 15 dismissed staff.

According to reports, the most affected employees were from the customer service section of the exchange. Other areas affected include fraud and compliance sections.

Despite the small number of employees laid-off, in a company that employed 550 people, the affected staff were unhappy and already threatening to sue the exchange, saying the company has no justifiable reason to cut them off as it just raised fund and about to go public.

Again, while the reason for the layoff is unclear, experts believe it is likely due to slow growth caused by the drop in cryptocurrency value.

For instance, the most dominant cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, has lost 54 percent of its value this year to trade around $6,400 on Monday, down from over $19,500 a coin it traded in 2017. While the cryptocurrency market itself has dropped more than 70 percent in market value this year.

Other coins suffered a similar fate, especially with the growing theft and loss of millions to cybercriminals taking advantage of the unregulated market and its large retail traders.

“Bitcoin’s price might be rising but it’s way too early to call this a true resurgence,” said Matthew Newton, a market analyst at the online trading platform eToro. “We’ve seen the price yo-yo for several months so I’d be hesitant to herald this as a new dawn just yet… Traders should be cautious.”

Coinbase is currently valued at $8 billion following its recent financial boost.

Reporting by Betty Chigozirim in Abuja; Editing by Samed Olukoya