There had been speculation in the market about significant layoffs in the works by KuCoin, but the crypto exchange clarified them on Tuesday.
According to the Seychelles-based firm, the adjustments that it makes to its headcount are part of its housekeeping.
The clarification
A spokesperson for the crypto exchange said that there had not been any planned layoff initiated by the company.
They said that the company does biannual appraisals as part of the normal organization development process because they want to be able to keep up with the competition in the market.
However, it is important to note that nowhere did KuCoin say that it was not laying off its staff. The only issue was with the terminology.
Johnny Lyu, the chief executive of the exchange, had an issue with the term layoffs being used for describing the company’s reevaluation of its headcount.
Earlier on Twitter, it had been reported by Wu Blockchain’s Colin Wu that the KuCoin crypto exchange was planning to lay off about 30% of its total workforce, which is 1000 strong.
He claimed that a number of KuCoin employees had confirmed the measure and further alleged that the reason was because their profits were taking a hit due to the strict know-your-customer (KYC) policy.
The details
According to Wu, KuCoin implemented the KYC policy on its platform after it had been subjected to a lawsuit in the United States.
The exchange had been accused of violating commodities and securities laws in the lawsuit that had been filed against it by Letitia James, the New York Attorney General.
There had been a lot of chatter on Twitter about the crypto exchange’s embattled state, but Lyu pushed back and claimed that there were just rumors flying around and nothing more.
He stated that it is their common practice to evaluate their organization structure regularly in order to stay on top and they do so based on company development and employee performance.
Therefore, he asserted that it was not just about layoffs, but about making the company more competitive and dynamic.
The exchange
The CEO also referred to a report that had been issued by the exchange earlier this month that was evidence of its growth.
According to the report in question, KuCoin had expanded its workforce by 300 in the first half of this year. The report also revealed that there was a change in the exchange’s KYC practices.
The report stated that the exchange was making upgrades to its KYC authentication systems because its priority was to meet global compliance requirements, ensure user security and provide a safer trading environment.
Data from CoinGecko shows that the KuCoin crypto exchange is ranked at the 11th position in terms of ‘trust score’.
On the last day, the total trading volume on the crypto exchange was around $327 million. The changes that KuCoin had made to its KYC policy had gone into effect on July 15th.
In accordance with the implementation, those who register with the exchange are required to complete the KYC process to be able to use the products and services offered.