Softbank-backed 2TM cuts about 90 jobs as crypto winter lingers

2TM, the holding company that owns Brazil’s Mercado Bitcoin, has dismissed about 90 employees, more than 10 per cent of its workforce, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be named because the number is not public.

In a statement, which did not include the exact number of people affected, 2TM said the measure was necessary because of the macroeconomic climate. The statement cited rising interest rates, inflation, and current global financial conditions. O Estado de S. Paulo, a Brazilian newspaper, first reported 2TM’s layoffs.

2TM raised US$50 million in November from investors including Tribe Capital and 10T Holdings. Earlier this year, the company had been linked to a potential deal with Coinbase Global that could have resulted in a controlling acquisition or a minority stake sale. The talks ended in early May. 

Coinbase, which has faced its own financial challenges, said on Thursday (Jun 2) that it would extend a hiring freeze and rescind certain job offers. That announcement followed a similar move from Gemini, which said it would slash 10 per cent of its workforce, and cuts at Bahrain-based Rain Financial. 

2TM is at least the second Softbank-backed crypto firm that has cut its workforce in Latin America to reduce costs in recent weeks, as the ongoing “crypto winter” has seen tokens like Bitcoin and Ether fall significantly from their record highs. 

At the end of May, Mexico-based crypto exchange Bitso told CoinDesk it had cut 80 employees out of a workforce of more than 700 people. BLOOMBERG