Layoffs in 2023: a list of Indian startups & tech companies that have cut jobs

A slowdown in client demand put up the Covid-19 years and unsure macroeconomic situations triggered mass layoffs throughout main US tech companies over the previous few months. This included large retrenchment at Meta, Amazon, Microsoft, and Alphabet, amongst many others.

Indian startups, too, have been impacted during the last six months as they wrestle to lift funds in a troublesome international atmosphere.

We reported on December 30 that fund-starved startups fired almost 18,000 in 2022, based on information compiled by govt search agency Longhouse Consulting that was shared solely with ET.

Also Read: Layoffs in 2023: full listing of firms which have introduced job cuts amid financial downturn

According to information from Tracxn, the subdued startup fundraising exercise continued within the first month of the brand new 12 months with Indian startups elevating $1.18 billion in January, down 75% in comparison with the identical interval final 12 months. January noticed 122 funding rounds in comparison with 331 rounds throughout the identical interval final 12 months.

Here is a listing of main Indian firms which have introduced layoffs:

Byju’s: India’s most respected startup Byju’s laid off 1,000 workers earlier this week because the edtech agency tries to steer itself on the trail to profitability. Those laid off included a number of senior roles in verticals resembling technique, know-how, and product, folks conscious of the matter advised ET. One of the sources mentioned that many senior vice presidents drawing salaries of Rs 1 crore and above misplaced their jobs. This just isn’t the primary time that Byju’s has sacked workers. In October final 12 months, it fired about 5% of its workforce or 2,500 workers. With the present spherical of layoffs, the entire variety of folks sacked by the agency is 3,500. Last 12 months, it mentioned it will minimize – or “rationalise” – about 5% of its 50,000-strong workforce throughout departments resembling product, content material, media and know-how in a phased method. Earlier in 2022, the corporate fired not less than 600 folks from group companies resembling Toppr and WhiteHat Jr.

Vedantu: Vedantu has laid off one other 385 workers in its fourth spherical of layoffs this 12 months, because the strain to chop prices and switch worthwhile mounts on Indian edtech companies. The firm had beforehand laid off 100-full time workers from its gross sales group in July and one other 624 full-time and contractual workers in two batches in May.

Unacademy: Edtech startup Unacademy minimize as many as 350 jobs amid a push to cut back prices and switch in a revenue, in one more spherical of layoffs. The edtech firm had beforehand fired round 1,000 contractual and full-time workers.

FrontRow: FrontRow, which is targeted on non-academic studying, has sacked 130 workers (nearly 75% of its workforce), throughout advertising and marketing, gross sales, engineering, and product, as startups within the on-line schooling sector relook at value buildings. FrontRow had laid off near 145 full-time and contractual workers in May this 12 months.

Dealshare: Ecommerce agency Dealshare has laid off round 100 workers, or over 6% of its 1,500-strong workforce. Confirming the event, Dealshare founder Sourjyendu Medda mentioned the choice is linked to its business plan for the following monetary 12 months with give attention to profitability.

GoMechanic: The automobile servicing startup has introduced that it’ll lay off 70% of its workers whilst SoftBank and Khazanah pulled out from a funding deal within the Sequoia-backed startup. One of the founders, Amit Bhasin, confessed to monetary lapses on the firm even because the board has initiated an audit of the startup because it struggles to remain afloat.

MohallaTech: MohallaTech, the father or mother agency of vernacular social media platform ShareChat and short-video app Moj, laid off round 20% of its workers or over 500 workers in a recent spherical of layoffs.

Swiggy: Swiggy will sack 380 workers, CEO Sriharsha Majety advised workers in an inner word. Majety mentioned the corporate’s meals supply business has been rising extra slowly than anticipated. He additionally mentioned that the corporate overhired over the previous two years resulting from “a case of poor judgement” on his half.

Dunzo: Reliance Retail-backed Dunzo has laid off about 3% of its workers final week and the fast commerce platform for groceries and different necessities is slicing prices elsewhere as nicely.

Ola: Ride-hailing and electrical car firm Ola has laid off about 130-200 workers in a recent spherical of layoffs on the SoftBank-backed mobility agency. The layoffs have occurred throughout the ride-hailing, electrical car and fintech companies. In September, the corporate rescinded the retrenchment of about 200 engineers.

Cashfree: Online funds service supplier Cashfree laid off round 100 workers because it appeared to cut back prices and money burn. The Bengaluru-based fintech startup, backed by YCombinator and Apis Partners, sacked workers throughout gross sales and service provider onboarding earlier this week.

Cars24: Used automobile market Cars24 fired greater than 600 workers in May final 12 months, with layoffs put in place throughout departments and roles. This is over 6% of its complete headcount of about 9,000 folks. “This is business as usual performance-linked exits that happen every year,” the corporate backed by Japan’s SoftBank and Alpha Wave Global had mentioned.

Oyo: Hospitality chain Oyo in December 2022 mentioned it was enterprise downsizing of workers and is letting go of 600 workers from its worker base of three,700. However, the corporate mentioned it is going to additionally go for hiring recent workers. The firm mentioned it’s making ‘wide-ranging’ modifications in its organizational construction.

Meesho: E-commerce agency Meesho laid off 150 workers in April final 12 months from its grocery business, which it lately restructured and rebranded as Meesho Superstore from Farmiso earlier. The firm mentioned final week it will combine the grocery vertical into its principal app, resulting in talks of redundancies throughout the agency.

Udaan: Business-to-business (B2B) ecommerce market Udaan retrenched 300-350 on-roll workers and a major chunk of its contract workforce in November 2022, for a complete layoff rely to over 1,000 folks, based on sources conscious of the matter. This was the second spherical of layoffs for the Lightspeed Venture Partners-backed firm after it laid off 180-200 workers, or 5% of its workforce, in June 2022.

WazirX: Crypto trade WazirX reportedly laid off 40% of its complete workforce in October 2022, based on CoinDesk. A complete of fifty to 70 workers of the 150 staff on the trade have been requested to go, The laid-off workers have been knowledgeable they might be paid for 45 days and that they might now not be wanted to report for work. “The crypto market has been in the grip of a bear market because of the current global economic slowdown,” WazirX was quoted as saying in a press release.

Mfine: Digital well being platform Mfine laid off round 500 workers in May 2022. According to media stories, the job minimize accounted for about half the workforce on the Bengaluru-based firm that was hiring workers till April. Mfine was based in December 2017 by former Myntra executives Ashutosh Lawania and Prasad Kompalli, who have been later joined by Narayanan and Arjun Choudhary.

(Graphics and illustrations by Rahul Awasthi)