AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT BLACKROCK (01/09/25)

Stephen Levine January 25, 2023

JANUARY 9, 2025 — 1% OF GLOBAL WORKFORCE

BlackRock announced the layoff of about 200 employees, or 1 percent of its global workforce.

BlackRock President Rob Kapito and Chief Operating Officer Rob Goldstein noted, “As part of these firmwide efforts, we will be making changes today that will see approximately 1% of our colleagues leave the firm. This is never easy.”

JANUARY 7, 2024 — 3% OF GLOBAL WORKFORCE

BlackRock plans to announce layoffs of about 3 percent of its global workforce, or about 600 employees in the coming days.

JUNE 24, 2023 — 1% of GLOBAL WORKFORCE

BlackRock announced additional layoffs that would impact less than 1% of its workforce due to budget reallocations to support critical priorities.

Approximately 150 to 190 employees will be impacted.

According to Chief Operating Officer Rob Goldstein and Global Head of Human Resources Caroline Heller, “the decision followed a recent business review. Even with these changes, our headcount will be higher at the end of the year compared to the start of the year as we continue to invest in our talent and our business.”

JANUARY 25, 2023 — Original post

New York City, New York-based BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, has announced that it will be initiating a major cost-cutting initiative affecting 2.5% of its global workforce.

The reduction in force will impact 500 employees.

According to a statement by CEO Larry Fink and President Rob Kapito, “The uncertainty around us makes it more important than ever that we stay ahead of changes in the market and focus on delivering for our clients. Our breadth and resilience enable us to play offense when others are pulling back.”

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. We see good people being laid off through no fault of their own. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?

AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT SILVERGATE FINANCIAL

Stephen Levine January 10, 2023

MARCH 8, 2023 — SILVERGATE BANK TO BE SHUT DOWN

Silvergate Capital Corporation Announces Intent to Wind Down Operations and Voluntarily Liquidate Silvergate Bank

Silvergate Capital Corporation, the holding company for Silvergate Bank, today announced its intent to wind down operations and voluntarily liquidate the Bank in an orderly manner and in accordance with applicable regulatory processes.

In light of recent industry and regulatory developments, Silvergate believes that an orderly wind-down of Bank operations and a voluntary liquidation of the Bank is the best path forward. The Bank’s wind-down and liquidation plan includes full repayment of all deposits. The Company is also considering how best to resolve claims and preserve the residual value of its assets, including its proprietary technology and tax assets.

In connection with the above: Centerview Partners LLC is acting as a financial advisor, Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP is acting as a legal advisor and Strategic Risk Associates is providing transition project management assistance.

In addition, Silvergate Bank made a decision to discontinue the Silvergate Exchange Network, which it announced on March 3, 2023, on its public website. All other deposit-related services remain operational as the Company works through the wind-down process. Customers will be notified should there be any further changes.

JANUARY 10, 2023 — Original post…

La Jolla, California-based Silvergate Capital, the holding company for Silvergate Bank which focuses on providing a payment network and other services to institutions in the virtual-currency industry, has announced a major reduction in force following major disruptions in the crypto-currency market leading to the loss of customer confidence.

The company's cost-containment initiative will target approximately 40% of the workforce, an estimated 200 employees.

According to CEO Alan Lane, "Significant overleverage in the industry has led to several high-profile bankruptcies and sparked a crisis of confidence across the entire digital asset ecosystem.

In addition to its crypto-related business, the bank announced in December 2022 that it was winding down its mortgage warehouse lending business due to the rising interest rate environment and reduction in mortgage volumes.

AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT STRIPE

Stephen Levine November 15, 2022

San Francisco, California-based Stripe, a payment processing software and application programming interfaces for e-commerce websites and mobile applications, has announced a 14% reduction in the company's workforce.

The reduction in force will impact approximately 1,000+ employees.

According to a company spokesperson, "Today we’re announcing the hardest change we have had to make at Stripe to date. We’re reducing the size of our team by around 14% and saying goodbye to many talented Stripes in the process.

"At the outset of the pandemic in 2020, the world rotated overnight towards e-commerce. We witnessed significantly higher growth rates over the course of 2020 and 2021 compared to what we had seen previously. As an organization, we transitioned into a new operating mode and both our revenue and payment volume have since grown more than 3x."

"The world is now shifting again. We are facing stubborn inflation, energy shocks, higher interest rates, reduced investment budgets, and sparser startup fundin."

"Our business is fundamentally well-positioned to weather harsh circumstances. We provide an important foundation to our customers and Stripe is not a discretionary service that customers turn off if budget is squeezed. However, we do need to match the pace of our investments with the realities around us. Doing right by our users and our shareholders (including you) means embracing reality as it is."

"Today, that means building differently for leaner times. We have always taken pride in being a capital efficient business and we think this attribute is important to preserve. To adapt ourselves appropriately for the world we’re headed into, we need to reduce our costs."