Robinhood Is Firing Nearly a Quarter of Its Staff (theverge.com) 29
Robinhood is letting go of nearly a quarter of its staff, CEO Vlad Tenev said in a message posted to the company's blog. The Verge reports: "As part of a broader company reorganization into a General Manager (GM) structure, I just announced that we are reducing our headcount by approximately 23%," Tenev wrote. "While employees from all functions will be impacted, the changes are particularly concentrated in our operations, marketing, and program management functions." Robinhood's chief product officer Aparna Chennapragada is also stepping down from her post as part of the restructuring, according to a filing (PDF) with the Securities and Exchange Commission, though she'll "remain employed in an advisory role to the CEO or his designee through January 2, 2023." Chennapragada joined the company from Google in March 2021.
The announcements came as Robinhood released its Q2 2022 earnings information a day earlier than scheduled, reporting total revenue of $318 million over the three months, which is 44 percent lower than the same period in 2021. In April, Robinhood said it planned to cut 9 percent of its full-time staff, but "this did not go far enough," Tenev said. The company had staffed up assuming that the increased trading after things like the GameStonk phenomenon and bullish crypto markets would carry into 2022 but has run into the headwinds of inflation and the so-called "crypto winter" that are affecting other companies. Those who are affected by the cuts will be able to stay at Robinhood through October 1st at their regular pay and benefits alongside a severance package, Tenev says.
The announcements came as Robinhood released its Q2 2022 earnings information a day earlier than scheduled, reporting total revenue of $318 million over the three months, which is 44 percent lower than the same period in 2021. In April, Robinhood said it planned to cut 9 percent of its full-time staff, but "this did not go far enough," Tenev said. The company had staffed up assuming that the increased trading after things like the GameStonk phenomenon and bullish crypto markets would carry into 2022 but has run into the headwinds of inflation and the so-called "crypto winter" that are affecting other companies. Those who are affected by the cuts will be able to stay at Robinhood through October 1st at their regular pay and benefits alongside a severance package, Tenev says.
Not a surprise (Score:4, Interesting)
Their business model was a bit too shady to start.
Re: (Score:1, Informative)
Also not much of a surprise that when you need all of your paycheck to keep the rent paid, food in your fridge, and gas in your tank, you don't have money leftover to gamble on meme stonks.
Re:Not a surprise (Score:5, Informative)
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Sure, sure. It has nothing to do with nearly everyone dumping them for taking away the buy button in January of 2021. Nothing at all.
/me looks at date...
mmhmm. Logic checks out.
Robin Hood is firing his quarterstaff? (Score:3)
Actually, it's a buck-and-a-quarter quarterstaff... [youtube.com]
I guess... (Score:3)
Re: (Score:2)
...but I'm not telling him that!
Joke (Score:3)
There's a Robin Hood and quarterstaff joke in there somewhere (recall his first meeting with Little John), but I'm not quite up to it this evening.
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There's a Robin Hood and quarterstaff joke in there somewhere
Well, there is an entire movie [imdb.com] of Robin Hood jokes. Though, watching a movie called "Men in Tights" probably gets you on some kind of list these days in Florida, lol.
Re: Joke (Score:2)
Tell them you thought it was actually a movie called "Mennonites".
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Severance (Score:2)
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Firing, or laying off? (Score:2)
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I mean, they didn't terminate 25 percent of staff for cause. So to the extent that there IS a difference between a layoff and a firing, I guess this was a layoff.
Does it matter? The 'cause' of these people begin laid off is the ineptitude and stupidity of their leaders.
Typically one who is fired isn't eligible for unemployment benefits depending on the state. If you're laid off, you are.
Shuffling the deck (Score:3)
It really looks like they are attempting to shuffle the deck and clear out dead weight to make another go of it. Reality is, they got played - hard. Their entire model was exposed as nothing more than a cash-adder for the really big investors who internalize every buy and sell order as much as possible and keep the float for themselves. The situation with Game Stop (and others) only highlighted this cozy relationship because the big boys pretty much told Robin Hood to put an end to it, and Robin Hood tried to do just that. So now you are once bitten, twice shy if you plan on using Robin Hood as a daily investment tool. Nope. You're going to change tact and find another investment tool that has actual fiduciary responsibility.
In the end, I hope this company folds and closes shop. But nothing is really going to change. It is really very easy to get rich in this country. Be highly intelligent and divorce yourself of anything related to morals or ethics and you will go far in the financial sector. Until you get caught, at least. Just know that you are a tool being used by others who will keep you funded right up until one of the regulatory bodies steps in and demands an accounting. But not to worry - in most cases, you get a slap on the wrist and maybe some time in a minimum security prison as long as you just played with money and didn't actually ruin lives. And you didn't run up against the big players or even look like you might. Don't kid yourself into thinking that this system isn't rigged. The House always wins.
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They could have kept the charade up if they hadn't started outright blocking trades that were unfavorable to the big investors. They're going to have to slim down and basically reinvent themselves if they hope to survive.
From what I understand (Score:4, Interesting)
The smart investors avoided it. Just another business fleecing the little guy. Basically an internet gambling house.
Re: From what I understand (Score:1)
Re: From what I understand (Score:4, Interesting)
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Taking from the poor (Score:1)
Just like Crypto... (Score:2)