Stripe lays off 14% of workers
Summary
In the memo, Collison said the cuts were necessary amid rising inflation, fears of a looming recession, higher interest rates, energy shocks, tighter investment budgets and sparser startup funding. Collison acknowledged that the companys leadership made "two very consequential mistakes" by misjudging how much the internet economy would grow in 2022 and 2023, and when it grew operating costs too quickly. The cuts will affect many of Stripes divisions, though most will occur in recruiting, as the company plans to hire fewer people next year, Collison said in the memo. On Tuesday, a former Treasury Secretary said that the US faces "as complex a set of macroeconomic challenges as at any time in 75 years", and many parts of the developed world appear to be headed for recession. In our view, we made two very consequential mistakes, and we want to highlight them here since theyre important: • We were much too optimistic about the internet economys near-term growth in 2022 and 2023 and underestimated both the likelihood and impact of a broader slowdown.