According to insights from a source familiar with Cowrywise’s operations, the company justified these workforce changes by asserting that the terminated roles no longer aligned with its evolving direction. Describing it as part of internal restructuring and adaptation to evolving business needs, the move sheds light on the dynamic nature of the fintech sector and the company’s vision of staying ahead of the curve.

With a team of 50 employees, Cowrywise, officially confirmed the termination of five roles following an annual performance review, insisting that these adjustments do not constitute layoffs typically associated with economic or business performance concerns, distancing itself from conventional layoff scenarios.

An unnamed insider acquainted with Cowrywise’s trajectory hinted at a transformation, envisioning the company as a “totally different” entity in the coming years, emphasising a shift towards being more of a finance company than a conventional fintech player. The anonymous source’s comments underline the strategic and visionary aspects of Cowrywise’s current decisions.

Affected employees received an atypical exit package, being compensated with three months’ salaries as opposed to the customary one month stipulated in their contracts. This unconventional move raises eyebrows and suggests a departure from the typical practices associated with performance-related terminations.

Founded in 2017 by Edward Popoola and Razaq Ahmed, Cowrywise, a member of Y Combinator’s Summer 2018 batch, has undergone significant growth since its inception. Initially launching with a savings feature, the startup has expanded its offerings, providing diverse investment opportunities to its user base in Nigeria. Noteworthy milestones include amassing over 220,000 users and securing a substantial $3 million pre-Series A funding round led by Quona Capital in January 2021.

Further solidifying its position in the financial sector, Cowrywise obtained a license in 2021 to operate as a fund manager from Nigeria’s capital markets regulator, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The company’s website asserts 19 SEC-licensed mutual funds for investors to choose from, with at least 20% of the country’s total mutual funds listed on its platform.

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The latest job cuts come six months after the removal of nearly a dozen roles, including the Chief Operating Officer. Primarily affecting the US team, the layoffs coincide with the reduction of salaries for remaining US and UK Chipper Cash employees.

Chipper Cash, which specialised in cross-border payments and recently entered the grocery industry, confirmed the layoffs, asserting that despite the challenges, its business is “doing very well” and is expected to be profitable in the coming months.

The company, founded in 2018, operates across eight countries, offering services such as zero-fee peer-to-peer transactions, global fund transfers, and assisting merchants with online payments. It also allows users in Nigeria and Uganda to trade cryptocurrency and buy fractional stocks in US-listed companies.

Despite raising over $300 million in funding and reporting significant growth with over 5 million downloads, Chipper Cash’s recent moves, including organisational restructuring and market focus adjustment, reflect challenges faced by fintech companies amid economic uncertainties and increased competition.

After doubling its workforce to 450 between 2021 and 2022, Chipper Cash’s growth has faced headwinds due to rising interest rates, the urgency to conserve costs, and competition from other fintech players. Earlier job cuts and leadership departures signal the company’s strategic shift towards core markets and products.

Financial challenges exacerbated by the collapse of prominent investors have prompted Chipper Cash to raise $25 million in convertible debt, signalling efforts to conserve cash and extend its runway in a challenging fundraising environment.

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According to Vox, the mass round of layoffs is expected to take place this Wednesday, with the move impacting a wide range of technical teams including those working on Facebook, Instagram, Reality Labs, and WhatsApp. 

This news was confirmed by a Meta spokesperson per Vox, and part of the memo read:

“This will be a difficult time as we say goodbye to friends and colleagues who have contributed so much to Meta,” Lori Goler, Meta’s Head of People.

The cuts could be in the range of 4,000 jobs, and while employees outside of North America, would be notified by email at varying timelines, some countries will not be impacted and employees in North America will be notified by email between 4 am to 5 am PT Wednesday morning. 

Employees in North America who can work from home are told to do so on Wednesday so the people can have enough space to process the news.

In November last year, Meta cut off 11,000 employees. Soon after in March, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said there would be another cut of 10,000 more jobs in the coming months.

The goal for the continued layoffs is part of Zuckerberg’s plans to ensure a “year of efficiency” in 2023. 

The increasing number of layoffs across tech companies is a warning for employees to tighten their seat belts, build themselves more and enhance their learning.

The post Meta: 4000 Employees might be Affected in Another Round of Layoffs appeared first on Tech | Business | Economy.

Layoffs have been seen across industries, from tech to retail, with companies from all over the world making tough decisions to reduce costs and improve efficiency. But why are there so many layoffs in 2023?

At the heart of the matter, the reasons for the widespread layoffs in 2023 can be attributed to a number of different factors. These include the global economic downturn, increased automation and AI, and the ever-changing nature of technology.

The economic downturn of recent years has had an impact on layoffs. Many businesses have been forced to reduce their staff in order to cut costs and remain profitable. This has been especially true in industries that are heavily reliant on consumer spending, such as tech, retail and hospitality.

With fewer people having the ability to purchase goods and services, organizations have had to make cost-cutting decisions to remain profitable.

Technology is changing at a breakneck pace, and businesses must keep up or risk being left behind. Companies are increasingly turning to automation for tasks that were once performed by humans, resulting in a decrease in labor costs. Companies are also relying more heavily on cloud computing, further reducing their need for staff. As a result, many businesses are forced to downsize their staff in order to stay competitive.

Layoffs are not without their advantages. By eliminating certain positions, companies can reduce their overall costs and maximize their profits. This can be beneficial in the short-term, as businesses can focus their resources on other areas of the business and invest more in innovation.

However, there are also many disadvantages to layoffs. Employees may experience wage cuts and reduced job security, leading to financial insecurity and stress. Furthermore, the quality of work may suffer as a result of fewer staff members working on projects. This can have a detrimental effect on the overall productivity of a business.

The rise in layoffs in 2023 is a troubling trend. It’s important for businesses to be aware of the potential impact it could have on their operations, as well as their employees. Companies should take steps to ensure that their staff are adequately supported and provided with the necessary resources to remain competitive in the changing technological landscape.

Layoffs can be a necessary evil in some cases, but businesses should do all they can to minimize their impact on employees and their operations. By being aware of the potential risks and taking steps to mitigate them, businesses can ensure that their staff remain happy, productive, and competitive in the ever-shifting technological environment.

The post Why Are There So Many Layoffs in 2023? appeared first on Tech | Business | Economy.

Mark Zuckerberg, Co-founder and CEO of Meta also disclosed that the company will cancel lower priority projects, as the indirect costs of these initiatives were not taken into cognizance.

Added to the 11,000 members cut off in the first round, Meta is letting go one-quarter of its workforce within the period. The tech giant says the latest restructuring efforts will start in its tech groups in April, followed by its business groups in May.

In Zuckerberg’s words: “With less hiring, I’ve made the difficult decision to further reduce the size of our recruiting team. We will let recruiting team members know tomorrow whether they’re impacted. We expect to announce restructurings and layoffs in our tech groups in late April, and then our business groups in late May. 

In a small number of cases, it may take through the end of the year to complete these changes. Our timelines for international teams will also look different, and local leaders will follow up with more details. Overall, we expect to reduce our team size by around 10,000 people and to close around 5,000 additional open roles that we haven’t yet hired.”

Following its initial move, Meta believes that the layoffs have had a good impact on the company’s operations:

“Since we reduced our workforce last year, one surprising result is that many things have gone faster. In retrospect, I underestimated the indirect costs of lower priority projects.”

Zuckerberg noted that a leaner organization will execute its highest priorities faster, while workers will be more productive, and their work will be more fun and fulfilling. “We will become an even greater magnet for the most talented people. That’s why in our Year of Efficiency, we are focused on cancelling projects that are duplicative or lower priority and making every organization as lean as possible.”

In a concluding statement focusing on the way forward, Zuckerberg said: “In terms of how we should operate during this period, I encourage each of you to focus on what you can control. That is, do great work and support your teammates. Our community is extremely resilient. Change is never easy, but I know we’ll get through this and come out with an even stronger company that can build better products faster and enable you to do the best work of your careers.”

The post In Second Round of Layoff, Meta Dismisses 10,000 Staff, Withdraws 5,000 Open Roles appeared first on Tech | Business | Economy.

This comes due to the fact that Y Combinator included late-stage investing in its focus, and this led to a distraction in its core mission.

A statement by the Accelerator read: “YC is known primarily as a place where very early founders create something from nothing by simply applying online and joining the world’s best founder community. When they do, a shocking percentage of them will go on to make a startup worth a billion dollars (on average 6 out of 100 startups in recent batches).

YC is rightly known for early-stage investing. In recent years, we have also done some late-stage investing. But late-stage investing turned out to be so different from early stage that we found it to be a distraction from our core mission. So we’re going to decrease the amount of late-stage investing we do”

The 17 affected members are part of the late-stage investing team which would no longer be needed as a result of the shift.

Appreciating their efforts, the Accelerator assured that the change wouldn’t affect existing late-stage companies.

“As we make this change in strategy, we want to acknowledge and express our appreciation for their substantial contributions.

There shouldn’t be any noticeable effect on the companies we’ve funded or on the way we interact with alumni, but if any companies or alumni have questions, I’m here and the YC group partners are here — as always, to help you make something people want.”

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Alerzo initially let go 5% of staff based on performance, with certain positions transitioning to digital systems, including an internal ERP. Subsequently, due to a requirement for increased profitability, a second round of layoffs ensued, impacting 15% of their full-time staff across departments, reducing the employee base to a total of 800.

The company’s rapid growth since inception led to hiring in large numbers, over 3,000 youths were employed within five years of existence, but the current economic climate has had an impact. In response, Alerzo has had to make adjustments to its business model in order to focus on achieving strong unit economics. 

This, according to the company, required the reduction of its workforce despite previous aggressive hiring practices in the past few years, which enabled growth and expansion throughout the country. 

Alerzo believes that the restructuring will enable better service to customers, while it pursues sustainable growth.

To those impacted, the e-commerce platform says it will pay out all contractual notice periods, provide an additional one-month severance, continue HMO coverage — including covered family members — until the end of 2023, and provide job placement and counselling services.

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Disclosing the news via his LinkedIn page, the Vice President of Revenue at Chipper Cash Stefano Pardi, referred to the occurrence as a sad one for the company. He wrote:

“Friday was a sad day for Chipper Cash, as many talented people were let go.

For my network: there is an incredibly talented pool of individuals across the US, UK, South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, and more. They are all highly experienced in managing very complex, multicultural teams and projects in Fintech. All areas have been impacted, from Recruiting, HR, Marketing, Pricing, Product, Analytics, UX, Research, Legal, and more.

If you are recruiting: look out for the Chipper Cash folks, you might have the opportunity of a lifetime to hire competent, passionate, and driven people into your team. They are all battle-scarred and experienced in scaling a business!

For my Chipper family, my network is open to you. Reach out/connect if you need help! I have been honored to work with many of you and I am here to support as I can.”

Leveraged across five African countries including Nigeria and Kenya, as well as the US and UK, the fintech company enables bill payment, cross-border money transfers and bitcoin purchases.

It earns revenue through foreign-exchange fees and crypto brokerage commissions. From about two million registered users in 2020 to more than five million by the end of 2021, Chipper Cash has continued to grown commendably. 

The company was founded by Ham Serunjogi and Maijid Moujaled, and was one of Africa’s unicorns in 2021 when it raised $150 million Series C funding in an extension round led by Sam Bankman-Fried’s now-defunct cryptocurrency exchange platform FTX, and was valued at $2.2 billion. The startup has raised $280 million in funding from Deciens Capital, FTX Ribbit Capital and others.

The post Chipper Cash Carries out Second Round of Layoffs appeared first on Tech | Business | Economy.

Jumia affirms it has taken this step to minimize costs and losses in line with streamlining its organizational structure and creating a more effective and highly committed team focused on set goals.

The e-commerce platform also did a headcount reduction in its Dubai office, affecting 60% of employees in managerial roles, while others are being posted to its African offices.

Report states that Jumia expects these headcount reductions will allow it save over 30% in monthly staff costs starting from March 2023, as compared to the October 2022 staff cost baseline.  

“The implementation of these organizational changes resulted in $3.7 million in one-off restructuring costs booked in the fourth quarter of 2022.”

Jumia has also significantly reduced its Sales & Advertising expense which decreased by 41% year-over-year in the fourth quarter of 2022.

According to the company, “As part of that, we are working on optimizing the returns on our paid online marketing investments by rationalizing marketing channels. We are also allocating a higher share of investment to local offline channels that help us cost-effectively build brand awareness and consideration. 

“We are also working on a comprehensive plan to drive fulfilment cost efficiencies. This includes several actions such as optimizing our footprint and logistics routes, improving warehousing staff management and productivity, reducing packaging costs, and many more. We have seen early signs of success of this strategy in our e-commerce physical goods business where the freight & shipping cost per package decreased by 23% year-over-year in the fourth quarter of 2022,” the company stated.

Francis Dufay, Jumia CEO said the company started implementing its strategy to accelerate its path to profitability and further strengthen fundamentals in the fourth quarter of 2022. “While the fourth quarter results only reflect a fraction of the actions we are taking, we are seeing early signs of success and remain focused on execution. In light of these encouraging signs, we expect a sharp reduction in Adjusted EBITDA loss from $207 million in FY2022 down to $100-120 million in FY2023. 

“We remain more than ever confident about the growth opportunity across our markets and are making fundamental improvements to our consumer value proposition which will help us drive sustainable long-term growth.”

Jumia Prime will be discontinued across all its markets. The company will also suspend its logistics-as-a-service in all markets except Nigeria, Morocco and Ivory Coast. Then, it will scale back first-party groceries in Algeria, Ghana, Senegal and Tunisia. It will also discontinue food delivery operations in Egypt, Ghana and Senegal. The company stated these activities accounted for less than 1% of group GMV in the first nine months of 2022 and 2% of group adjusted EBITDA loss. 

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The Microsoft-owned company is also moving to Teams for its video conferencing needs and moving its laptop refresh cycle from three to four years in a bid to cut costs.

In an email to the staff, Thomas Dohmke, CEO, GitHub wrote: “Today, we are announcing a number of difficult decisions, including saying goodbye to some Hubbers and enacting new budgetary realignments, designed to protect the short-term health of our business while also granting us the capacity to invest in our long-term strategy. With great respect for Hubbers, I first want to be clear about why we are making these decisions and what it means for GitHub’s future.

Sustained growth is important for every business. For GitHub, this means that we continue to enable more productive developers across the globe and move quickly as our opportunities to help our customers change.

Today, we are the home of 100M developers, and we must become the developer-first engineering system for the world of tomorrow. The age of AI has started and we have been leading this change with GitHub Copilot, our most successful product launch to date. We have an enormous opportunity to build an integrated, AI-powered GitHub with urgency. 

We must continue to help our customers grow and thrive with GitHub, expedite and simplify their cloud adoption journey, while supporting them every day. This will require strong focus and changes to how and where we invest our finite resources.

To start, we will align our work with the areas where we can best impact these goals and our customers’ needs across all of our products. Unfortunately, this will include changes that will result in a reduction of GitHub’s workforce by up to 10% through the end of FY23. A number of Hubbers will receive notifications today, others will follow as we are re-aligning the business through the end of FY23. The hiring pause that I announced on January 18 remains in effect.

Although our entire leadership team has carefully deliberated this step and come to agreement, ultimately, as CEO the decision is mine. I recognize this will be difficult on you all, and we will approach this period with the utmost respect for every Hubber. We will speak with impacted Hubbers so that they understand the transition compensation and COBRA/COBRA equivalent (outside the US) that will be provided. Career transition services assistance benefits will also be offered.

Additionally, we have been working to improve our operational efficiency and scale as a business. One of our decisions is to move toward a fully remote GitHub. We are seeing very low utilization rates in our offices around the world, and this decision is a testament to the success of our long-standing remote-first culture. We are not vacating offices immediately, but will move to close all of our offices as their leases end or as we are operationally able to do so. We will share more workplace details and transition plans with you as they are finalized.

We are looking at further reducing our operating costs. We will share details and transition plans with you in the coming months, but I wanted to share two decisions with you: i) Effective immediately, we will be moving laptop refreshes from three years to four years. ii) We will be moving to Microsoft Teams for the sole purpose of video conferencing, saving significant cost and simplifying cross-company and customer conversations. This move will be complete by September 1, 2023. We will remain on Slack as our day-to-day collaboration tool.

Finally, I want to extend my deepest gratitude to every single Hubber and their incredible talents that have helped GitHub grow to where we are today. Every commit you have made and every day you have worked has helped construct GitHub into the largest and most important software development platform. Thank you for your dedication, resilience, and passion to empower millions of software developers around the globe.”

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