NEAR Foundation Announces Workforce Reduction
The NEAR Foundation has revealed plans to reduce its team by 40% as part of a realignment initiative, impacting 35 employees. This move follows a review that found the foundation to be ineffective and moving too slowly at times.
Focus on Core Activities
The layoffs will primarily affect community, business development, and marketing teams, while the engineering team will remain unaffected. NEAR Protocol aims to narrow its focus and concentrate on activities with a higher impact.
Decentralization and Future Growth
The NEAR Foundation expects further contraction as the ecosystem decentralizes and more nodes become available. The departing team members will receive assistance in finding new opportunities within the Web3 industry and NEAR ecosystem.
Strong Treasury Position
The foundation reassured that its treasury is secure, with $285 million in fiat, 305 million NEAR tokens worth over $1 billion, and $70 million in loans and investments.
Rise in Crypto-Related Layoffs
The NEAR Foundation’s layoffs are not unique, as other crypto-related companies have also undergone restructuring. Blackrock is expected to downsize its team by 3% (about 600 employees), while OpenSea, Ava Labs, Polkadot Technologies, Coinbase, Binance, and other major crypto exchanges have also reduced their workforce.
Hot Take: Industry-Wide Restructuring Reflects Maturing Market
The recent wave of layoffs in the crypto industry demonstrates a maturing market where companies are realigning their operations for greater efficiency and focus. As the industry evolves, organizations are streamlining their teams to prioritize core activities and adapt to changing market dynamics. While these workforce reductions may initially seem concerning, they are a natural part of the business cycle and indicate a necessary evolution for sustained growth in the crypto sector.
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