Payments fintech Bolt announces layoffs

E-commerce checkout fintech Bolt is set to lay off a number of its employees as part of “several structural changes”, according to an announcement made by the firm’s CEO Maju Kuruvilla.

Bolt announces restructuring

According to Bloomberg, which cites “a person familiar with the company”, around 250 employees could be impacted, constituting about one-third of the firm’s total workforce.

In a message to employees earlier this week, Kuruvilla says: “It’s no secret that the market conditions across our industry and the tech sector are changing, and against the macro challenges, we’ve been taking measures to adapt our business.

“In an effort to ensure Bolt owns its own destiny, the leadership team and I have made the decision to secure our financial position, extend our runway, and reach profitability with the money we have already raised.

“To laser focus on our core business and products, we will be prioritising our roadmap and making several structural changes. Unfortunately, this includes reducing the size of our workforce and parting ways with some incredibly talented people on our team as of today.”

The start-up recently raised $355 million in a Series E funding round in January 2022.

The news follows a string of layoffs in the fintech space in recent weeks amid ongoing volatility in the market.

Buy now, pay later (BNPL) giant Klarna recently announced it is to let go of approximately 10% of its global workforce, while US fintech Main Street has laid off around 30% of its staff.

Australian BNPL fintech BizPay announced a similar 30% staff cut, while Robinhood is also shedding 9% of its full-time workforce.