Ethereum Layer-2 Projects Polygon, Immutable Lay Off Staff

Ethereum Layer-2 project Polygon is letting go of some of its staff after merging multiple business units.

In a blog published Tuesday, Polygon’s founders and president said they would lay off 20% of workers and cut 100 positions. All affected employees will receive three months of severance pay.

“This was a painfully hard decision, but a necessary step in our journey,” they said.  

Last month, Polygon announced a corporate restructuring that combined all staff under “Polygon Labs.” 

Polygon’s native token MATIC is among the 10 largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization. MATIC sank 6.5% following the layoff announcement.

The token had been the best performer among the top 20 cryptocurrencies over the preceding month, having gained 48%.

Around one year ago, Polygon raised $450 million in venture capital funding in a private token sale led by Sequoia India. Now, the team says its treasury remains “healthy,” with a balance of $250 million and over 1.9 billion MATIC ($2.53 billion).

Separately on Wednesday, Australian startup Immutable, creator of the NFT-focused Ethereum Layer-2 network Immutable X, disclosed it had slashed 11% of its staff. 

Immutable cited a dearth in cash reserves and a push to redirect resources for the cuts, the Sydney Morning Herald reported, noting that it would include shaking up business units.

It also plans to transfer responsibility of some aspects of game development to external partners so it can focus on its crypto and Web3 components.

A spokesperson called the reporting, “a false attribution,” and told Blockworks that “Immutable did not cite low cash as the reason for this strategic move in February.”

Last year, the firm laid off 6% of its workforce, mostly affecting developers who worked on NFT-centric game Gods Unchained. 

Genesis, Crypto.com, Blockchain.com and ConsenSys are among other crypto companies that recently reduced their workforces.

Updated March 8, 2023 at 5:33 am ET: Added a comment from an Immutable spokesperson.

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