Kraken trims workforce as AI adoption grows across crypto sector

Kraken has reportedly reduced its workforce by around 150 employees as the crypto exchange increases the use of artificial intelligence across its operations, a move that Bloomberg said could delay the company’s planned U.S. public listing until 2027.

Bloomberg reported on Friday, citing a person familiar with the matter, that the layoffs were tied to operational efficiencies created through AI deployment inside the company, whose corporate entity is known as Payward. The same source told Bloomberg that Kraken is not preparing another round of cuts for now, even as AI tools are being adopted more aggressively across different teams.

Pressure on crypto firms has continued to build this year as falling digital asset prices and rising automation costs reshape spending plans across the sector. Publicly traded crypto companies have already posted weaker first-quarter earnings after crypto markets lost momentum late last year.

While Kraken had previously been expected to pursue a U.S. public offering this year, Bloomberg reported that the latest restructuring could push the timeline into 2027. Earlier plans had already faced interruptions after the company confidentially filed paperwork with U.S. regulators in November before pausing the IPO process in March amid weakening crypto market conditions.

At an industry conference last month, Kraken co-CEO Arjun Sethi confirmed that the exchange had confidentially filed for an IPO, although he did not provide a launch window for the listing.

An industry wide trend

Elsewhere in the crypto industry, workforce reductions linked to AI adoption have accelerated throughout 2026. More than 5,000 crypto-related jobs have reportedly been cut this year, with several companies attributing the decisions to automation and restructuring efforts.

Earlier this month, Coinbase said it would reduce about 14% of its workforce as part of what CEO Brian Armstrong described in a public employee memo as a push toward becoming “lean, fast, and AI-native.” Armstrong said AI tools were allowing engineers to complete work in days that previously took weeks and added that non-technical employees were increasingly shipping production code through automated workflows.

Under Coinbase’s restructuring plan, the company said it would remove layers of management, limit the organization to five levels below the CEO and COO, and test smaller AI-focused operational teams.

Other exchanges have also announced large cuts this year. Back in February, Gemini disclosed plans to lay off roughly 200 employees while shutting down operations in the UK, the European Union, and Australia. The exchange linked the decision to mounting losses, IPO-related spending, and weaker crypto market conditions after Bitcoin dropped below $70,000.

Separately, crypto analytics platform Dune said this week that it had cut 25% of its staff as part of a restructuring focused on core products.