At a Glance
- Polygon Labs has cut roughly 30% of its workforce amid a strategic pivot to stablecoin payments
- The layoffs follow the company’s $250+ million acquisitions of Coinme and Sequence
- CEO Marc Boiron says the move is structural, not performance-based
- Why it matters: The restructuring signals Polygon’s full commitment to becoming a payments-first blockchain, consolidating talent after major US acquisitions
Polygon Labs is slashing jobs again. The Ethereum Layer-2 company confirmed it has eliminated approximately 30% of its workforce, marking the third round of layoffs in as many years as it restructures around a new mission: moving all money on-chain.
Third Round of Cuts
The latest reductions were revealed through a flurry of posts on X from affected employees, later confirmed by CEO Marc Boiron. While Polygon has not released an exact head-count, the 30% figure positions this as the deepest cut since the firm began trimming staff in 2023.
Previous layoffs:
- February 2023 – 20% of workforce, ~100 roles
- February 2024 – 19% reduction, ~60 roles
- February 2025 – 30% reduction, exact number undisclosed
Each cycle has coincided with a strategic shift. The 2023 cuts accompanied a bear-market survival plan; the 2024 cuts produced what leadership called an “efficient surgical team” alongside 15% salary increases for remaining employees. This time, the driver is an ambitious pivot toward regulated stablecoin payments in the United States.
$250 Million Acquisition Spark
The layoffs come days after Polygon agreed to acquire two US companies for more than a quarter-billion dollars combined:
- Coinme – crypto payments firm with nationwide money-transmitter licenses
- Sequence – wallet infrastructure provider serving banks and fintechs
Together, the deals give Polygon instant access to fiat on-ramps, off-ramps, and embedded wallet technology. Boiron said integrating the new businesses created “overlapping roles” that necessitated a fresh organizational chart.
Structural, Not Performance-Driven
In his public statement on X, Boiron stressed that the layoffs reflect structural overlap, not employee performance.
> “We have spent the past few months sharpening our focus around a single mission-moving all money on-chain,” he wrote, adding that headcount is expected to remain “roughly similar” once new payments-focused hires offset departures.
The firm’s infrastructure-centric teams are giving way to talent pools aligned with:
- Regulated stablecoin products
- Enterprise payment integrations
- Compliance and licensing operations
- Consumer wallet experiences
Market Context
Polygon’s MATIC token, recently rebranded to POL, has traded sideways for months as investors wait for tangible revenue from the new payments stack. The acquisitions position Polygon to compete directly with Circle’s USDC ecosystem and PayPal’s PYUSD, both of which have been courting fintechs for on-chain settlement.
Competing Layer-2 networks, including Arbitrum and Optimism, have so far avoided similar layoffs, opting instead to fund ecosystem grants while maintaining lean core teams.
What Happens Next
Affected employees have been offered severance packages, according to posts on X. Boiron said hiring in payments-focused roles will ramp up once integrations of Coinme and Sequence are complete, a process expected to run through mid-year.
Polygon will also migrate Coinme’s 40-plus state licenses onto its own legal entities, a move that could open new revenue streams through compliance-as-a-service offerings to other crypto projects.
Key Takeaways
- Polygon’s third layoff in three years removes 30% of staff as it pivots to payments
- The company just spent $250 million acquiring US crypto payments and wallet firms
- CEO insists cuts are structural, vows to backfill with payments talent
- The restructuring underscores a broader trend: infrastructure-focused blockchains are racing to capture real-world payment flows amid regulatory clarity in the US
