Ledger to shave 12% of global employees amid market slump

Paris-based crypto security company Ledger is set to lay off roughly 80 members of its global workforce.

According to an open letter on Wednesday from CEO Pascal Gauthier to employees, Ledger will shave 12% from its more than 700-strong headcount, after revealing it too has fallen prey to current market conditions and a need to adapt for “longevity.”

“Macroeconomic headwinds are limiting our ability to generate revenue and in response to the current market conditions and business realities, we must reduce roles across the global business,” Gauthier said. 

The precise number of layoffs remains unknown. Blockworks has reached out to learn more. Ledger has offices in London, Paris and New York as well as locations in Portland and Spain, according to its LinkedIn profile.

A major cut in staff raises concerns over the firm’s health amid a prolonged bear market that continues to hammer away at once lofty valuations, all while questioning companies’ reasons to exist. 

In the letter, while addressing the impending layoffs, Gauthier attempted to instill a sense of achievement, calm and future promise at the nine-year-old company. 

“Over the last decade Ledger has built a best-in-class hardware and software platform, selling more than 6.5 million Nanos and…securing more than 20% of global crypto assets,” he said.

Gauthier also pointed to Ledger’s performance during turbulent market conditions of yesteryear, emphasizing the company had been prepared — despite having to axe jobs and counter negative perceptions.

“In early 2022, when the bear market first began… The events of the last year and a half have helped the market appreciate Ledger’s fundamentals,” he said. 

Events last year, including the collapse of Terra’s ecosystem, an industry-wide contagion that followed and the high-profile implosion of FTX, has continued to plague the industry.

Data shows the industry’s total market valuation has fallen by two-thirds, from almost $3 trillion in late 2021 to just over $1 trillion by today’s standards. 

Venture capital funding — which initially dried up following last year’s rout — is beginning to show some signs of recovery, though the bounce back has been a slow, grinding process.

Even still, Gauthier remains optimistic about the company’s future endeavors.

“Our retail business has never been more exciting,” he said, pointing to the “increased usage, revenue and transactional volume within Ledger Live” and the upcoming launch of services like Ledger Recover and Ledger Stax. 

Acknowledging his company had not been “perfect in all matters,” Gauthier conveyed confidence in Ledger’s ability to come away relatively unscathed.

“We have made mistakes along the way. To fail is part of the process. But I sincerely believe the positive outweighs the negative and that we will come out of this bear market stronger together,” he said.

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