Nigerian crypto payment startup, Lazerpay, said it will lay off an undisclosed number of its staff as the economic downturn bites harder.
The company also disclosed that its management staff has been working without salary for months, even as the salaries of junior staff were cut.
The downsizing became inevitable as its attempt to raise seed fund failed with its lead investor pulling out of the deal.
Just like Quidax, another Nigerian crypto company which laid off 25% of its staff last week, Lazerpay said its travails has no connection with the collapse of FTX.
Failed seed round: A statement seen by Nairametrics quoted Lazerpay’s CEO, Emmanuel Njoku, to have said:
- “Earlier this year, we began raising our seed round and had interest from investors. Unfortunately, our proposed lead investor pulled out abruptly due to market conditions and disagreement on terms. This impacted our ability to complete this round. In a bid to extend our runway, our management team stopped taking a salary, and our employees graciously stayed onboard with a pay cut over the past few months.
- “Despite these sacrifices, in addition to changing our fundraising strategy and making the needed adjustments in the operations of the business, we are still faced with a hard decision to downsize and part ways with some incredibly talented members of our team.
- “This is unrelated to the FTX collapse. Lazerpay did not hold any assets in FTX and, consequently, is unaffected. Our customers’ funds are safe, and the company will keep processing payments as normal. We remain firm in our mission to enable businesses to go global.”
Nestcoin connection: Checks by Nairametrics reveal that Nestcoin, a Nigerian cryptocurrency investment firm dedicated to building and investing in crypto-focused products, was the main investor in Lazerpay. Nestcoin announced the investment of an undisclosed amount in Lazerpay in November last year.
Earlier this month, Nestcoin announced layoffs after its assets (cash and stablecoins) were lost to the FTX collapse.