Amber Group, Asia’s leading crypto and lending platform, has slashed its headcount and scrapped a sponsorship deal with Chelsea Football Club.
The crypto winter has claimed yet another firm to strict cost-cutting measures as the Amber Group has announced a 40% cull of its employees.
The firm has also been affected by the FTX contagion. Although Annabelle Huang, a managing partner at Amber Group, claims that less than 10% of the firm’s trading fund was on FTX, according to the Financial Times report.
Amber Group Cost-Cutting
According to a Bloomberg source, the firm had over 1,100 employees at its peak – it is now down to 400. It also laid off over 50% of its staff in Sept, euphemistically calling it a “quarterly business adjustment.”
The company has been reducing its headcount since June. According to Annabelle Huang, the headcount reduction is due to “team composition adjustments.”
The cost-cutting efforts are not just limited to letting go of the employees. The team is also shutting down its various offices and has asked the staff to work from home.
Structural Changes and Fresh Fundraising
The firm is reportedly winding down its retail operations; it wants to majorly focus on institutional clients, family offices, and high-net-worth individuals.
It has halted expansion plans but recently raised $50 million in funding from a “new sovereign fund” at a valuation of $3 billion. The valuation was the same as in Feb. 2022, when the firm raised $200 million from Singapore’s Temasek holding. Along with Temasek, Amber Group is backed by well-known names like Sequoia China and Tiger Global Management.
Amber Group to End Chelsea FC Sponsorship
The Amber Group will also end its sponsorship with the Chelsea Football Club. In May 2022, it signed a sponsorship deal with the football club to display the logo of its trading arm, WhaleFin, on the sleeves of Chelsea players. The sponsorship deal cost the Amber Group $25 million for 2022-23 season.
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