ConsenSys, the company behind the popular MetaMask crypto wallet, is cutting its workforce by more than 20%, which means 162 out of 828 employees will be laid off.
According to the CEO Joe Lubin, the company needs to change how it operates to stay strong in tough economic times. Lubin explained in the blog post that the layoffs are part of a plan to make the company smaller and more flexible.
“Today, we are making the tough but prudent decision to streamline our operations to position Consensys for ongoing rapid innovation, long-term sustainability under possibly volatile scenarios, and continued leadership in the web3 space.” He said.
The layoffs will impact all areas of the company, including business development and product teams. ConsenSys said it will offer support to the workers who are leaving by giving them generous severance pay, help finding new jobs, and extended healthcare benefits.
Lubin also talked about the challenges ConsenSys faces with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The company is currently involved in a legal fight with the agency to clarify Ethereum’s status as a security.
He criticized the SEC for its strict actions against many companies in the crypto industry. Lubin said that these actions are “abuse of power” and have resulted in lost jobs and investments.
In his words “Multiple cases with the SEC, including ours, represent meaningful jobs and productive investment lost due to the SEC’s abuse of power and Congress’s inability to rectify the problem. Such attacks from the US government will end up costing many companies that have been investigated, sued, or sent Wells Notices, many millions of dollars.”
Moving forward, ConsenSys will focus on important projects like MetaMask and the layer-2 protocol Linea. Lubin expressed his goal of changing the company into a decentralized “network state,” which aligns with blockchain principles.
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