Fintech Unicorn Zepz to Lay Off 20% of its global workforce, sources say

London – British Digital Remittanese Company Zepz is Laying Off Dozens of It Workers and is in the process of closing down business units in Poland and Kenya.

Roghly 200 Staff Members will be impacted by the redundancy measures, two employees who were made redundant told cnbc, asking to remain anonymous due to the sensitivity of the matter.

As of January, London-Headquartered Zepz-Formerly Known as Worldremit-Had a Global Headcount of 1,000 people, meaning the Redundancies Affect AROUND 20% of our

The Layoffs Affect Several It Functions At the Company, Including Database Administration, Development Operations and Software Engineering, The Former Employes Said.

Zepz confirmed to cnbc that it was reduction headcount in order to “sustainably support the next phase of long-term strategic goals and continued ground.” The company declined to comment on the number of employers impacted by the layoffs, with a spekesperson explaining that the redundancy process was ongoing.

“Following the successful completes of its replatforming efforts, bolsred by advanced automation and ai, zepz have embarked on a strategic initiative to optimies,” Eerson Told CNBC by Email.

“This transformation has been reinforced the technology foundation and reduced the need for certain operating and technical capacities, prompting a proposed initiation in Roles as Part of the Overall Plan,” The Spokesperson Added.

Zepz has been touted as one of britain’s fintech darlings. The company was founded by ismail ahmed, a somalia-born British entrepreneur who fled the country during Ahmed Today Serves as the company’s non-executive Chairman.

The group was renamed zepz following the acquisition of money transfer platform sentwave

CNBC Obtained A Company Memo Announcing the cost-cutting measures shared by zepz CEO Mark Lenhard internally in January.

“Today we are announcing a very differential decision – Proposed Reductions in Our Team Across all HQ Functions, and Most Regions. And Specifically We Are Proposing the Closure of Our Kenya and Oour Enhard said in the memo.

Zepz touts itself as a “Remote-FIRST Employer,” With Regional Offices in Kenya and Poland.

“This is a different choice, which impacts the lives of our colleagues and friends. Same time, “Lenhard said.

“To be clear, this is not a change of strategy. “In some places, this will mean we’ll need to continue to ruthlessly prioritize.

Zepz’s spoakesperson insisted that it worker layoffs ” Elivering meaningful Financial Solutions to Millions globally. “

This isn’t the first time zepz has cut a spate of roles to save on costs. In 2023, Zepz Laid off 420 EmployeesWhich accounted for about 26% of its global headcount at the time. Later That Year, Zepz Slashed a further 30 roles Across its people and marketing functions.

Zepz has long been touted as a potential ipo candidate, but a timeline for this is unclear. Counting the Likes of Accel, TCV and Leapfrog as Investors, The Startup was valued at $ 5 Billion in 2021. The company announced a $ 267 million funding Round Last Year.

Zepz Faces Competition from Several Notable Digital Payments Players Including Paypal, WiseRevolut and remitly.

Watch: We now have ‘a whole generation’ of fintechs prepaering for iPos, Says Qed Investors’ Nigel Morris