Bitcoin Nears New Highs, Yet Industry Faces Wave of Layoffs and Transformation: ConsenSys and dydX Lay Off 20-35% of Employees

The developer of the MetaMask wallet, ConsenSys, recently laid off about 20% of its employees. Combined with previous reports of high-level departures from its Layer 2 blockchain Linea, concerns about ConsenSys' future development have arisen. Founder and CEO Joseph Rubin attributed the layoffs primarily to adverse macroeconomic factors and prolonged legal expenses from the company's ongoing battles with regulatory agencies, necessitating cost-cutting decisions.

Airdrop enthusiasts are worried! Linea's core team members leaving one after another, community fears no more token distribution

Fledgling Little Fox and Linea, Uncertain Future for Consensys

Founded by Joseph Rubin in Brooklyn in 2014, Consensys is best known for the widely used Metamask wallet. In recent years, the yet-to-be-launched Layer 2 Linea has attracted attention, along with other notable products like Wallet Guard.

In a previous article, we mentioned that key members of the Linea team, including the founder and BD, left in mid-June this year. Although the founder stated that it was a peaceful parting due to differences in direction with the Consensys team, it still raised concerns within the community.

Consensys Entangled in Legal Disputes, Possibly Downsizing to Cut Costs

However, Joseph Rubin recently admitted on Twitter that Consensys is planning to lay off 20% of its workforce. He attributed this decision to the macroeconomic uncertainties and regulatory pressures of the past year, stating that these factors have had a significant impact on U.S. companies. He positioned this round of layoffs as part of Consensys' long-term sustainability and decentralization journey, emphasizing the need for restructuring to enhance competitiveness.

In fact, the regulatory uncertainties mentioned by Joseph Rubin specifically refer to Consensys' legal disputes with the SEC, which currently seem to be unfavorable for Consensys.

A U.S. court dismissed Consensys' claim against the SEC and sided with the SEC's reasons for the lawsuit.

Bitcoin Market Remains Hot, dYdX Chooses to Cut 35% of Staff

Coincidentally, as Bitcoin approaches its historical highs, decentralized derivatives trading platform dYdX also announced a 35% workforce reduction. While the article used various rhetorical devices to convey the difficulty of this decision, dYdX did not specify the exact reasons for the layoffs. It only stated that the development and roadmap of dYdX were conflicting, and this decision was made to move forward with a clearer vision and higher enthusiasm, creating astonishing innovations.