Bitcoin’s sinking prices are taking down companies built around cryptos, reported TechCrunch. Companies from China to Brooklyn are laying off staff and reviewing their outlooks.
Bitmain, based in Beijing, is the latest company to feel the pinch. A provider of bitcoin mining hardware, the company closed an Israeli development center and made “some adjustment to our staff” reported CoinDesk. The company had raised more than $800 million in venture capital funding from companies like Sequoia and SoftBank, and was valued at $12 billion at one point. It has submitted initial public offering paperwork to the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong.
Meanwhile ConsenSys laid off 13 percent of its 1,200 employees, as reported by CoinDesk. The company, based in Brooklyn, has an annual cash burn rate at more than $100 million, according to estimates made by Forbes.
Downsizing has also taken hold at Steemit, a New York City-based firm focused on creating a blockchain protocol for applications. The coin circulated by users, STEEM, had fallen 96 percent from its all-time highs by the end of November when the announcement was made. It has continued to fall since then, trading at $0.27 at the time this story published.