Bitmain downsizes further as Amsterdam office folds

Bitmain, China's crypto mining giant, has announced the closure of its Amsterdam HQ; the second overseas office to be affected after offices in Israel shut in December. 

A company's spokesperson said the "adjustments to [] staff and operations" were part of a wider mission to “build a long-term, sustainable and scalable business," Coindesk reported.

Bitmain's operations in the Netherlands are still ongoing, according to a statement, but the process to shut it is now "underway." Neither the timeline for this or the number of staff affected have been disclosed, however. Coindesk identified "at least nine" Bitmain employees based in Amsterdam on LinkedIn, adding that "their responsibilities mostly focus on the operations and development of Bitmain’s flagship mining pool BTC.com.

Bitmain also confirmed last week that it had reduced its workforce at the Rockdale mining farm in Texas. In July, the Chinese firm said it was bringing 400 jobs to the site but local County judge Steve Young said that all but three had been laid off, Texas Public Radio reported. Bitmain explained in a statement that cutbacks were happening across the company - including in China.

The closures come days after it was confirmed that co-CEOs, Jihan Wu and Micree Zhan, were stepping down. Its application for an IPO still hangs in the balance.

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