Genesis Trading on Wednesday named CEO Derar Islam as the crypto broker’s interim head and said it has cut its headcount by 20 percent. Islam replaces Michael Morrow, who is stepping down as CEO effective Wednesday, the company said.
The New York-based company is the latest in the cryptocurrency space to be hit by the so-called “crypto winter,” which has forced high-profile companies to cut staff in recent months.
Before the layoffs, Genesis employed about 260 people, a company spokeswoman said.
Last month, Genesis approached bankrupt crypto hedge fund Three Arrow Capital, another casualty of declining interest in digital assets.
The company, however, pared its losses after Three Arrows failed to meet a margin call, outgoing CEO Morrow said at the time, adding that Genesis parent Digital Currency Group had assumed some of the crypto broker’s responsibilities.
Genesis has named Tom Connie, president of former hedge fund SAC Capital and its successor, Point72 Asset Management, as a senior adviser.
Morrow will advise the company through the transition, Genesis said, adding that it has begun searching for a full-time chief executive.
Meanwhile, venture capitalists are pouring money into digital currency and blockchain startups at a pace that has eclipsed last year’s record, Reuters reported in July, even as the cryptocurrency sector shakes from the bitter cold.
In the first half of the year, VCs bet $17.5 billion (roughly Rs. 1,39,600 crore) on such companies, according to data from PitchBook. This has led to investments on top of the record $26.9 billion (approx. Rs. 2,14,630 crore) raised last year, the report said, marking a warmer and happier time for Bitcoin and co.
© Thomson Reuters 2022
