Mass Layoffs: Candy Digital, A Gary Vee Backed NFT Startup, Fires One-Third of Its Workforce

According to reports, Candy Digital, a sports and entertainment NFT start-up founded in 2021 and valued at $1.5 billion the same year, has laid off a major portion of its workforce.

Reports suggest that Candy Digital has cut off more than one-third of its nearly 100-person staff this year, owing to volatile crypto market circumstances and a big drop in NFT trading volumes.

Candy Digital’s former community content manager, Matthew Muntner, confirmed the news on Twitter.

I hate that I have to share this as much as I loved my job at @CandyDigital but I was part of the layoffs that occurred earlier today.

I am quickly looking for a new role in Community Management, Graphic Design, or related Marketing.

Thanks, Candy Fam for one hell of a ride

— Muntner (@muntnerdesigns) November 28, 2022

Candy Digital

The startup describes itself as “a next-generation digital collectible company offering digital assets for fans and collectors.”

They are basically into the creation of NFTs. In their own words, “Our team of world-class digital artists, designers, and technologists is developing a broad range of digital collectibles, beginning with sports content and expanding into art, entertainment, music, and more!”

Michael Rubin, executive chairman of sports merchandise company Fanatics, along with Galaxy Digital founder and CEO, Mike Novogratz and entrepreneur and investor Gary Vaynerchuk, founded Candy Digital in June 2021. Fanatics was regarded as the primary owner at the time, and it stated that it would promote Candy through its current customer base.

Candy Digital reported in October 2021 that it had secured $100 million at a valuation of $1.5 billion in a Series A investment led by Insight Partners and Softbank’s Vision Fund 2.

Mass Layoffs

Candy Digital is the second NFT-focused company to lay off employees in recent months, as the industry has lost significant traction as a result of the crypto market’s decline and broader macroeconomic instability. NFT sales have dropped drastically since the beginning of the year, with around 87% less overall trading volume in October compared to January. NFT prices have also plummeted.

Dapper Labs, the producer of NBA Top Shot and NFL All Day, one of Candy’s main competitors in the sports NFT industry, fired around 22% of its employees earlier this month. In July, OpenSea, the leading overall NFT marketplace, also laid off 20% of its workforce.

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