ConsenSys, an Ethereum -bases Blockchain outfit, is slashing 14 percent of its workforce amid a major restructuring in its core business model.
First reported by The Block, the decision was propagated by the company in an all-staff meeting on Tuesday.
The fresh layoffs will add to the 13 percent downsizing of the company’s staff done in December 2018.
The company, however, did not reveal the exact headcount to be cut off from the workforce.
Dividing businesses
The move came at a time when the blockchain startup decided a major restructuring in the company - dividing the company into two verticles - one focusing on software development and the other on the startup investments.
“Over the past year, ConsenSys undertook a deep strategic review and articulated two separate strategies to grow and support the ecosystem as a software company and a separate investment company,” the company said in a statement.
According to the publication, the business roles were separated as the firm was struggling to raise capital. It will now move to raise another $200 million, which might make it one of the few blockchain unicorns with valuations of over a billion.
“ConsenSys will operate a software business composed of several of its products optimized for a modular stack, which includes Infura, PegaSys, MetaMask, and Codefi, among several others,” the company noted.
“The business is focused on two goals: providing developer tools and infrastructure for the developer, decentralized finance, and startup communities; and helping enterprises in the financial services, trade finance, and commerce sectors deploy and operationalize blockchain solutions.”
Last May, the New York-headquartered company also restructured its various operations.
Also, in December, the company closed its offices in India and the Philippines and subsequently laid off all staff from these offices.
ConsenSys was started by Joseph Lubin, one of the co-founders of Ethereum, with his own funds, which he received from Ethereum, but the Brooklyn-based company’s business was massively hit by the bear in the cryptocurrency market, especially when the value of Ether plummeted.
