- According to sources familiar with the matter, the Miami-based platform has cut about ten people from its workforce.
- A spokesperson confirmed the job cuts and noted that” we’ve reorganized internally and reworked budgets.
- The Giving Block enables nonprofits to accept crypto donations and allows donors to identify crypto-ready charities rapidly.
The Miami-based company, The Giving Block, has trimmed about 12% of its workforce, according to two sources familiar with the matter. The crypto donation marketplace has laid off around ten people of its staff in three small rounds since the fall of the giant crypto exchange FTX in November.
The firm’s spokesperson confirmed the number of job cuts via the Block, noting,
“Like many other fintech and crypto companies currently, we are in an unfortunate position forcing us to make tough decisions regarding restructuring our team. We have reorganized and reworked budgets to limit the number of layoffs while doing what’s best for our staff and the company’s future success.”
The Giving Block, founded by Alex Wilson and Pat Duffy in 2018, created a platform to enable nonprofits to accept cryptocurrency donations and enable donors to identify crypto-ready charities quickly.
Last year March, the U.S. listed Shift4. This payment company acquired the Giving Block with an upfront payment of $54 million and a potential payment of cash and stock, accumulating up to $246 million. However, according to the Giving Block spokesperson, the company still operates independently and maintains autonomy.
On May 24, 2022, the PR newswire noted that Giving Block created its first-ever crypto donations fund for Miami nonprofits. This first-of-a-kind fund enables donors to give to various local nonprofit organizations with a single crypto donation. The Giving Block, a leader in philanthropy, facilitates easy cryptocurrency fundraising for nonprofits as it motivates donors to give cryptos to their favorite causes.
The co-founder of the firm stipulated that,
“Miami has been so welcoming to the crypto community. It is the perfect city to work with to create our first-ever local impact index fund. We are excited to work with Mayor Suarez to bring crypto philanthropy to Miami via our Miami Impact Index Fund. All donations to the Impact Index Fund will be matched through our Caring with Crypto Campaign.”
However, Caring With Crypto is a historic crypto fundraising campaign designed to raise over $20 million for nonprofit organizations on the Giving Block in partnership with its parent firm Shift4. This was the first time the platform worked with a city to highlight local charities via the company.
In 2021, the crypto donation platform processed about $70 million in donations, according to its annual report. The spokesperson said the platform projected to process $1 billion in crypto donations last year. He stipulated that the firm’s 2022 annual report will be released early next month.
The crypto Winter shortcomings
Aside from the Giving Block, various crypto platforms have also trimmed their workforce, with many alleging the severe market conditions in the industry. On January 13, Crypto.com revealed through its blog post that it was cutting 20% of its workforce due to the ongoing crypto winter. Genesis crypto firm joined the slashing of the workforce cycle, trimming 30% of its staff in a second round of layoffs in less than six months.
Other major companies, such as Coinbase, Kraken, and Blockchain.com, have also laid off part of their workforce. The worries of the economic downturn have piled pressure on the crypto industry as several investors flee risky assets.
