Kraken CEO lashes out against some employees for being ‘bad fit’ Kraken CEO lashes out against some employees for being ‘bad fit’
Jesse Powell said that the actions of some employees is negatively impacting the productivity of others because their focus has shifted from the company’s culture.
2 min read
Updated: Jun. 15, 2022 at 8:13 pm UTC
Cover art/illustration via CryptoSlate. Image includes combined content which may include AI-generated content.
Kraken CEO Jesse Powell lashed out on Twitter against some employees for going against the company’s crypto-first culture, saying that around 20 people out of its 3,200 workforce were not fit for the organization.
Powell revealed that these employees’ actions have impacted others’ productivity, labeling them a “bad fit.”
1/ We recently attempted to summarize what the @krakenfx culture has been over the past 11 years, and what we hope it continues to be.
We had a few heated debates and it turns out we have about 20 people out of 3200 who are totally not on board. 👇🧵https://t.co/Ht6bagQ6T1
— Jesse Powell (@jespow) June 15, 2022
According to him, the issue with these workers is that their focus has shifted from the company’s culture to battling first-world issues.
In his words,
“When things started to look grim, sensitivities and the misalignment came through. People focused on minor slights, first world problems rather than our really big, important Mission to help billions of people.”
Powell continued that this turn of events has forced him to re-emphasize the company’s “crypto-first culture.” He continued that employees have been asked to either commit to the company or receive their pay and leave.
10/ Unfortunately, that's not enough for everyone. Someone's likely been sharing internal chat (in breach of their NDA) devoid of context, with a journalist who we expect to publish a hit piece in the next few days. I just want to say we welcome all, and don't believe the news.
— Jesse Powell (@jespow) June 15, 2022
Powell noted the possibility that a story could be published about the firm soon as someone might have broken their non-disclosure agreement by sharing internal conversations with journalists.
The Kraken CEO concluded that the firm has developed some “policies that might not appease woke activists but work for the other 99% of the world,” while also showing that the firm is currently hiring for over 500 positions.
Crypto companies are downsizing
Crypto exchanges like Coinbase, Gemini, Crypto.com, and a host of others have been forced to downsize due to the current macroeconomic situation that has seen the crypto market crash to new lows.
Coinbase revealed that it was sacking over 1000 workers because of the macroeconomic landscape and the beginning of a recession that could last for a long time.
Others like Gemini, Robinhood, BlockFi, and Crypto.com have also revealed their intentions of cutting down their workforce.
However, the only exceptions appear to be Kraken and Binance, whose CEO Changpeng Zhao revealed that the firm is hiring for over 2000 positions because the firm has a “very healthy war chest.”
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Oluwapelumi Adejumo
Oluwapelumi values Bitcoin's potential. He imparts insights on a range of topics like DeFi, hacks, mining and culture, underlining transformative power.
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Kraken
Kraken is a San Francisco-based digital asset exchange in euro volume and liquidity that trades various currencies, including Canadian dollars, US dollars, British pounds, and Japanese yen.
Binance
Binance is a global cryptocurrency exchange that provides a platform for trading more than 100 cryptocurrencies.
Gemini
Gemini is a regulated digital asset exchange and custodian that allows customers to buy, sell, store, and stake digital assets in a regulated, secure, and compliant manner.
Crypto.com
Crypto.com was founded in 2016 on a simple belief: it’s a basic human right for everyone to control their money, data and identity.
BlockFi
BlockFi is a defunct cryptocurrency lender company which is currently in bankruptcy proceedings.
Jesse Powell is an expert in virtual currencies, online/international payments and fraud, as well as co-founder and former CEO of Kraken, one of the most trusted and largest Bitcoin exchanges in the world with number one EUR market share.
Changpeng Zhao, popularly known as “CZ,” is a notable figure in the cryptocurrency world, primarily for founding and leading Binance, the world’s leading cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume.