Bitpanda To Slash Nearly 30% of Workforce, Citing Recession Threat

The Vienna-based cryptocurrency exchange has also rescinded new job offers as the roles are now dropped, the latest sign of industry stress

article-image

blockworks exclusive art by axel rangel

share

key takeaways

  • “Nobody knows when the market sentiment will change,” Bitpanda told employees
  • Bitpanda is struggling to keep up with the crypto industry’s pace, the firm admitted

Bitpanda is letting go of about a third of its workforce as the firm looks to navigate a period of turbulent markets and uncertainty.

The Peter Thiel-backed cryptocurrency exchange said in a letter to employees that it wants to cut down its headcount from more than 1,000 to 730, citing a need to improve its financial health against the effects of an anticipated recession.

“Over the past few months, the market sentiment has dramatically changed, fuelled by geopolitical tensions, rising inflation and concerns about the imminence of a recession,” Bitpanda said in the letter. 

“There’s lots of uncertainty in the financial markets right now and, while we do know that the industry is cyclical, nobody knows when the market sentiment will change.”

Bitpanda admitted to facing challenges in keeping pace with the crypto industry’s growth. The company also said it has rescinded new offers as the roles it was previously hiring for are no longer available. It now plans to focus on safety and compliance, user experience, education and community.

“Move fast and break things” has been the motto of many companies looking to adapt [in] the Web3 space, Sheraz Ahmed, managing partner at STORM Partners, told Blockworks. “Now we can’t be acting surprised when the latter happens after the former,” he said.

The Vienna-based firm joins a series of other crypto firms looking to cut costs by slashing staff. Coinbase, one of the best-known exchanges, recently said it would cut 1,100 jobs due to expectations of a recession. Vauld, BlockFi, Crypto.com, Gemini, BitMEX, Buenbit and Bitso have all recently announced layoffs during a difficult period for the industry.

Record inflation and commodity shortages due to Russia’s war in Ukraine have created production challenges all over the world. David Malpass, head of the World Bank, said on Sunday that some countries will find it especially hard to avoid a recession

Economists at Goldman Sachs see an increased risk of a US recession. In a research note dated June 22, the bank said it now estimates a 30% probability the US economy enters a recession over the next year, up from a previous estimation of 15%. Additionally, it sees a 25% conditional probability of a recession in the second year if one is avoided in the first.

Bitpanda last raised $263 million in a Series C round at a $4.1 billion valuation in August 2021. The company said it was the first Austria-based firm to pass the billion dollar valuation mark.


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

Tags

Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily, with Byron Gilliam.

Upcoming Events

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

recent research

Research Report Templates (2).png

Research

We’re bullish on the PUMP token. We believe Pump.fun's brand strength, existing integrations, product roadmap, and strategic levers justify PUMP's TGE valuation, and expect the token to re-rate meaningfully higher in the months ahead.

article-image

The non-profit’s “Project Open” seeks to let stocks trade directly on Solana

article-image

The acquisition is Pump.fun’s first, and comes just days before its planned ICO

article-image

As Trump’s tariff war reignites, everyone is assuming the dollar will continue its path lower. But the journey might be bumpy

article-image

A valuation model for “blockchain GDP”

article-image

The mini app combines vibe-coding with a hypercasual game feed and is coming to the new Coinbase Wallet

article-image

An improbable tale of the world’s 40th graphics-chip startup