Kraken lays off staff, announces new co-CEO

Kraken says it needs to be “leaner” moving forward as it appoints a board member as co-CEO

article-image

Maor_Winetrob/Shutterstock modified by Blockworks

share

Kraken announced layoffs Wednesday as the crypto exchange looks to shift its organizational structuring. 

It wasn’t immediately clear how many roles were impacted, and a Kraken spokesperson declined to comment.

New York Times reporter Mike Isaac said 15% of roles were impacted, citing sources. 

Loading Tweet..

“As we’ve grown north of $1 billion in net revenue as a remote organization worldwide, we fell into the trap of building organizational layers. We put managers in charge of the successes or failures of the groups they controlled, and we predicated success based on siloed P&Ls,” a blog post said.

“At its best, this structure can provide clear paths for ‘managers’ whereby they can move from smaller, less complex areas of focus to progressively larger and more complex ones. So, ‘managers’ are incentivized to do the wrong thing.”

The exchange said that it needed to get “leaner” as it moves forward, echoing a sentiment heard from Consensys CEO Joe Lubin when he announced that his firm laid off 20% of its staff on Tuesday.

Read more: dYdX, Consensys layoffs shake up the space

“Looking ahead, I see a next generation economy not dominated by large monolithic companies; instead, smaller, agile, AI-supercharged companies with Web3-based coordination tools will operate more efficiently. To stay competitive in this fast-growing space, we need to reshape ourselves and be more agile, more effective and even higher-performing,” Lubin said.

Additionally, Kraken appointed Arjun Sethi as co-CEO of the firm, who will join Dave Ripley in helming the exchange. Sethi previously served on Kraken’s board. 

Perp exchange dYdX also announced layoffs on Tuesday, announcing a reduction of 35%. According to its website, dYdX employed roughly 50 employees.

Blockworks reported last week that Helium’s parent firm laid off 40% of its staff back in August and Matter Labs told Blockworks that it let go of 16% of its staff back in September. 

The news comes after Kraken announced it was launching its own layer-2 called Ink, somewhat following in the footsteps of a competitor. Coinbase launched its own layer-2, Base, last year. Unlike Base, Ink plans to bring new users to DeFi.


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.

Industry City | Brooklyn, NY

TUES - THURS, JUNE 24 - 26, 2025

Permissionless IV serves as the definitive gathering for crypto’s technical founders, developers, and builders to come together and create the future.If you’re ready to shape the future of crypto, Permissionless IV is where it happens.

Brooklyn, NY

SUN - MON, JUN. 22 - 23, 2025

🚀 Build What’s Next — Permissionless IV Hackathon Join us June 22–23 in Brooklyn for the Permissionless IV Hackathon — a 36-hour sprint hosted by Cracked Labs and Blockworks where top builders turn ideas into real products. Come to launch, not just […]

recent research

Research Report Templates (10).png

Research

Kamino has evolved into a full-stack asset scaling suite with V2: unlocking new markets, improving capital efficiency, and catering to various risk profiles. We believe it is best positioned to become the credit backbone of Solana as the ecosystem matures. Simply put, KMNO remains our highest-conviction bet in the Solana ecosystem. This report lays out our thesis.

article-image

This isn’t the worst hack to ever hit Mt. Gox, but it could be the most entertaining

article-image

Crossover’s CEO discusses institutional interest and how over-the-counter (OTC) trading has picked up in crypto

article-image

Sponsored

This collaboration signifies a major leap forward in expanding the reach and utility of Web3 gaming within the vibrant Asian market

article-image

Asymmetric information is threatening crypto the same way it once threatened equities. Disclosure might be the fix.

article-image

Rate cuts drift into Q4 limbo as markets pretend everything’s fine

article-image

The FOMC held interest rates steady for the fourth-straight time on Wednesday