Amber Group cuts Hong Kong workforce by 50%

Singapore-based Amber Group halved its total staff size in Hong Kong to 40 as it struggles to survive the prolonged crypto winter, South China Morning Post (SCMP) reports.

Amber Group CEO Michael Wu had earlier disclosed that the FTX collapse affected the firm — resulting in the firm laying off roughly 63% of its workforce in 2022.

Staff cut to 40 members

The SCMP reported on Jan. 18 that Amber Group has moved to reduce its entire Hong Kong workforce to 40 staff by cutting support jobs including IT and risk management, SCMP reports.

Amber Group has also reduced its compliance staff from 20 people to only 5, making its internal auditing team redundant, according to the report.

It was also reported that the trading firm has delayed payment of bills to third-party vendors — some owed in arrears for up to six months.

Cutting costs

Earlier on Jan. 13, Amber Group reportedly said that it is “anticipating and preparing itself for an extremely conservative position, so it can go the long mile” — evidenced by slashing its workforce and canceling performance-based bonuses.

Amber Group was working out the legal proceedings needed to end its $25 million deal with Chelsea FC as a cost-cutting measure.

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