Devin Finzer, CEO of OpenSea, tweeted on Friday that the non-fungible token (NFT) platform had reduced its operational workforce due to the ongoing downturn in digital art collectibles.According to early Friday reporting from the cryptocurrency news outlet Decrypt, up to 50% of OpenSea employees may have been impacted by the widespread layoffs.
While NFT prices are still declining, the company is getting ready to introduce a redesigned marketplace called OpenSea 2.0. This coincides with the employment losses.Bored Apes and Pudgy Penguins are just two examples of the NFT collections that can be traded and collected on the marketplace.
“We’re building a new foundation so we can innovate faster and we’ll have some experiences to share with you soon,” Finzer said in a post on X (formerly Twitter). “We will change how we operate – shifting to a smaller team with a direct connection to users.”
According to The Information, OpenSea had 230 workers when it lay off almost 20% of its workforce in July 2022.How many workers the corporation had before this most recent round of layoffs is unknown.
Furthermore, OpenSea 2.0’s differences from its predecessor are not immediately apparent.Finzer withheld information regarding the platform’s anticipated product portfolio and its planned release schedule.A Nansen report claims that in August, the floor prices of well-known NFTs from well-known or “blue-chip” collections dropped by more than 25%.A digital artwork from a certain collection, or drop, can be sold for as little as its floor price, which is an NFT.In the meantime, NFT prices have decreased more widely as well; so far this year, the Nansen NFT-500 index has dropped by 55%.