The Quidax cryptocurrency exchange in Nigeria has let go at least 20 employees, or 25% of its workforce.
This comes just after the business spent millions of naira to promote Big Brother Naija, the most well-known reality TV program in Nigeria.
The corporation originally reduced employee pay by 30% in August of this year, and the layoffs were the final straw.
Quidax confirmed that their layoffs had no connection to the FTX debacle because it has “no association with FTX” at a time when the cryptocurrency sector is still dealing with the impact of the collapse of the second-largest crypto Exchange in the world, FTX.
Economic downturn, however, was cited by the corporation as the cause of their problems. The business announced in a statement announcing the layoff:
- “We have some difficult news to share with our community today. Following the economic downturn around the world, we have had to make some tough decisions at Quidax. We had to say goodbye to 20% of our exceptionally talented people. We deeply value our people and it has not been an easy decision to make.
- “In June 2021, the global economy was on track to stage a solid post-COVID recovery with at least a 5.6% growth. Things were looking up and we made several plans and growth projections as a company at the start of 2022. In 2022, the three largest economies – China, the USA, and the Euro area – saw reduced growth. This has affected the global economy, which slowed to 3.2% growth.”
Quidax stated that it is still in business and “not going anywhere, anytime soon,” while reassuring its customers that their assets are secure and covered by an insurance policy from its custody partner.
Health insurance for impacted employees and their families would be provided, as well as a severance package, according to the corporation, which stated it will continue to support the fired employees.
- It added that affected employees will also be paid for the notice period they would have had to give if they had resigned. “We will connect affected employees to our network of companies and founders within the fintech space,” it said.
When things were going well, Quidax had appointed the well-known showbiz figure Don Jazzy as its Ambassador under a multimillion-naira contract back in March of this year.
- The company followed suit in July by being one of the sponsors of BBNaija Season 7, where it also doled out N10 million plus a Dubai trip to viewers of the show.
