Robinhood Axes 23% of Staff, Cites “Broad Crypto Market Crash”

Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev said the layoffs were concentrated in its operations, marketing, and program management departments. 

Another Robinhood Staff Cut 

Robinhood is letting go of even more employees.

A Tuesday evening blog post from Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev has revealed that the company is reducing its headcount by a further 23%. Explaining the decision, Tenev cited the troubling macroeconomic environment, which has weighed heavily on both the equities and crypto markets since the start of the year. 

“We have seen additional deterioration of the macro environment, with inflation at 40-year highs accompanied by a broad crypto market crash. This has further reduced customer trading activity and assets under custody,” he said, while also clarifying that the layoffs were concentrated in the company’s operations, marketing, and program management departments. 

The Tuesday announcement is not the first time Robinhood has reduced its staff this year. In April, the company first cut 9% of its 3,800 workers in a bid to reduce costs and improve efficiency. After these latest cutbacks, Robinhood is estimated to have 2,662 employees left on its payroll.

Soaring inflation and subsequent interest rate hikes from the Federal Reserve crushed risk-on assets in the first half of 2022. High-growth tech stocks and cryptocurrencies, which have typically received the highest trading volumes from Robinhood users, have fared poorly this year, a factor that may be contributing to the app’s struggling bottom line. 

Tenev ended his note by ensuring all affected employees that they would be offered the opportunity to remain employed with Robinhood through October 1, 2022, while receiving their regular pay and benefits. He also said staff exiting the company would be offered cash severance, payment of COBRA medical, dental and vision insurance premiums, and job search assistance.