Coinsquare, a Toronto-based cryptocurrency exchange, has reportedly laid off 27% of its workforce – about 40 employees – in a move that saw some of its key executives leave the organization.
According to local news outlet BetaKit, Coinsquare’s COO Robert Mueller, who had been at the company for over a year, and CFO Ken Tsang, who was hired at about the same time, were among the employees the cryptocurrency exchange laid off.
Coinsquare’s head of talent, Martin Hauck, posted a message on LinkedIn regarding the company’s move, noting that in the cryptocurrency space things are “volatile and unpredictable,” adding that just like some of its competitors, Coinsquare was forced to reduce staff. The message reads:
Many similar companies in our industry have had to make some tough choices in recent months and Coinsquare has had to as well. The company has made the decision to part ways with a number of talented members of the Coinsquare team.
Notably this is the second round of layoffs the company has done during the cryptocurrency bear market, as in June of last year approximately 20 of its staff left the company. Per BetaKit, the move comes after Coinsquare expanded into 25 countries across Europe in December.
Thomas Jankowski, Coinsquare’s chief digital and growth officer, revealed at the time the company was being successful, and that it would continue “optimizing” its business. Back in December of 2017, during the crypto market’s high, the firm raised $10.5 million in a Series A investment round.
The company’s CEO Cole Diamond, speaking to BetaKit, noted that although the company has recently laid off 40 employees, it has added 23 net new employees so far this year. Out of these, 14 came from the acquisition of blockchain-based loyalty rewards firm Tipcoin.
Commenting on the move, he noted he’s better than some competitors:
As you are probably aware, QuadrigaCX, our main competitor in Canada, is offline. And we know that other exchanges in this country are in trouble. Coinsquare is in absolutely no trouble.
Diamond further claimed Coinsquare has an “incredibly strong balance sheet,” which features $40 million in company funds and assets. Most of these assets, he said, are cash. Despite his comments, he noted the move was “quite difficult because we let go of a number of talented people.”
