Crypto payments firm Wyre reportedly shutting down amid market downturn

Cryptocurrency payments company Wyre is reportedly shutting down operations by the end of January, amid the broader crypto market downturn following the fall of FTX.

See related article: Alameda Research transfers spark suspicions as SBF denies involvement

Fast facts

• Two unnamed employees told Axios that Wyre is shutting down, with one adding that CEO Ioannis Giannaros emailed part of the staff during the holidays about plans to liquidate the company and terminate services by the end of the month.
• The unnamed source said the company has not yet offered a severance package, leading to widespread concern among employees.
• “In my opinion, #Wyre won’t continue as a profitable business,” wrote Michale Staib, former technical engineer at Wyre, via LinkedIn on Dec. 31.
• “We’re still operating but will be scaling back to plan our next steps,” Giannaros told Axios via email. 
• Transport company Bolt previously planned to purchase Wyre for US$1.5 billion, before canceling the deal in September. Wyre has raised US$29.1 million across nine funding rounds, according to Crunchbase data.
• Founded in 2013, Wyre is the latest among a series of companies caught up in the fallout caused by the collapse of FTX exchange paired with broader macroeconomic conditions.

See related article: No change in community banks’ view of crypto after FTX’s collapse, says ICBA’s Brian Laverdure

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