The Weekly Wrap: all you need to know by Friday COB | January 20th

By Puja Sharma

The Weekly Wrap is published every Friday and recaps the week’s main stories and deals, as well as upcoming events and announcements. For Prime subscribers only.

The Big Story

A wider economic downturn is forcing cryptocurrency exchange platform Coinbase to cut around 950 jobs – 20% of its workforce.

Announcing the move, CEO and co-founder Brian Armstrong said that in 2022, “the crypto market trended downwards along with the broader macroeconomy”.

As a result, the firm is cutting its operational expense by around 25% quarter on quarter, Armstrong says, which includes letting go of around 950 people. As part of the headcount reduction, Coinbase will also be shutting down several projects that “have a lower probability of success”.

Armstrong adds that over the past decade, tech firms have been “too focused on growing headcount as a metric for success” and that, going forward, the firm will shift its focus on to boosting operational efficiency. “Over the last decade, Coinbase has made it through multiple bear markets using this process,” Armstrong says, but this is the first time a crypto cycle has coincided with a broader economic downturn.

Despite the bad news for those affected, Armstrong says he is “still optimistic about our future and the future of crypto”

Deals of the week

• Tabby raises $58m Series C from Sequoia Capital India and others
• FinTech Anyfin raises €30m Series C to accelerate Europe expansion
• GetVantage partners with IPV to invest INR 200c in start-ups
• nsKnox raises $17m to meet the growing demand for B2B payment security & compliance solutions
• Klarna partners with Ingenico on in-store BNPL
• Swiss InsurTech TONI Digital closes $12.5m Series B
• Alrajhi Bank adds Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources to digital B2B bank guarantee service
• Danish SME neobank kompasbank raises €12m in new funding
• LuLu Exchange partners with Mercury to launch digital native payroll card
• muvin launches video KYC feature for teenagers

Be on the lookout for

The fourth edition of the Global Fintech Fest (GFF 2023), to be held September 5-7, 2023, at Jio World Centre, Mumbai, is set to be the one-stop destination for all movers and shakers of the fintech world. GFF is the most important and largest fintech conference in South Asia.

Over the past three years, it has been showcasing 360 degrees how fintech plays an essential role in ensuring sustainable global progress. GFF is the nodal platform where policymakers, regulators, industry captains, thought leaders, academicians, and all significant players in the fintech ecosystem converge from across the world once a year.

Major policy decisions are announced, future courses of action deliberated, the latest products showcased, data-rich reports released and fintech achievements recognised through prestigious awards, over hundreds of sessions in numerous tracks, and exhibitions. On the one hand, GFF receives prime media attention, on the other, it offers unmitigated networking opportunities.