--- title: Luno cutting a fifth of its workforce – South Africa not... description: Luno, the crypto exchange owned by Digital Currency Group, is cutting 20% of its global workforce and restructuring into three business units. South African... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/luno-cutting-a-fifth-of-its-workforce-south-africa-not-spared-42y41motr twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: Luno cutting a fifth of its workforce – South Africa not spared | daily.dev og:description: Luno, the crypto exchange owned by Digital Currency Group, is cutting 20% of its global workforce and restructuring into three business units. South African... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/luno-cutting-a-fifth-of-its-workforce-south-africa-not-spared-42y41motr og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/42Y41mOTR.png og:image:alt: Luno cutting a fifth of its workforce – South Africa not spared og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Luno cutting a fifth of its workforce – South Africa not spared **[TechCentral](https://daily.dev/sources/techcentral)** · 5 min read · 1 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary Luno, the crypto exchange owned by Digital Currency Group, is cutting 20% of its global workforce and restructuring into three business units. South African employees are among those affected, though exact numbers haven't been disclosed. The cuts are attributed to a downturn in retail crypto trading and increased automation investment. Luno is reorganizing around: a retail exchange plus crypto-as-a-service API offering, a stablecoin and wallet infrastructure unit (including Zaru, a rand-backed stablecoin launched in February 2026), and a global settlements institutional business. The company is also narrowing its geographic footprint, exiting several regions to focus on Africa and Southeast Asia. This is Luno's second major round of layoffs in three and a half years, following a 35% cut in January 2023. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### Why is Luno laying off 20% of its staff? Luno attributes the cuts to a downturn in retail crypto trading, which it describes as a recurring cyclical phase since its 2013 founding, combined with its own investment in automation that is reducing the resource model needed to run the business. CEO James Lanigan announced the cuts alongside a reorganisation into three units: retail exchange plus crypto-as-a-service, stablecoins and wallet infrastructure, and global settlements. _Anyone tracking crypto industry job cuts and restructuring can follow ongoing coverage on daily.dev._ ### What is Zaru and who backs it? Zaru is a rand-backed stablecoin launched by Luno in February 2026, described as South Africa's first institutional-grade, reserve-backed rand stablecoin issued by a regulated entity. It enables same-day settlement in rand domestically and internationally at near-zero cost, using an embed-and-license model, with network partners including EasyEquities, Lesaka, Sanlam and Standard Bank. _Developers building on stablecoin infrastructure can track platforms like Zaru through daily.dev._ ### How many jobs did Luno cut in its previous 2023 layoff round? Luno cut 35% of its workforce in January 2023, affecting more than 330 staff out of roughly 960 employees at the time, during what the company called an incredibly tough year for the tech and crypto industries. That round preceded James Lanigan's promotion to CEO two months later, replacing co-founder Marcus Swanepoel who became executive chairman. _Following crypto company layoff patterns over multiple cycles is easier when tracked on daily.dev._ ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [Discovery Bank opens the crypto gates](https://daily.dev/posts/discovery-bank-opens-the-crypto-gates-ps26g1uhs) · TechCentral · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Luno says crypto draft may clash with SA’s IMF commitments](https://daily.dev/posts/luno-says-crypto-draft-may-clash-with-sa-s-imf-commitments-mshtga7oo) · TechCentral · 1 upvotes · 0 comments - [South Africa wants to ban companies from moving stablecoins abroad. Individuals keep their allowance.](https://daily.dev/posts/south-africa-wants-to-ban-companies-from-moving-stablecoins-abroad-individuals-keep-their-allowance-r0hmvvlxh) · The Next Web · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Coinbase flattens management and trims workforce in AI-driven restructure](https://daily.dev/posts/coinbase-flattens-management-and-trims-workforce-in-ai-driven-restructure-jzqe7w95l) · LeadDev · 0 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#crypto](https://daily.dev/tags/crypto), [#fintech](https://daily.dev/tags/fintech), [#stablecoin](https://daily.dev/tags/stablecoin) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/luno-cutting-a-fifth-of-its-workforce-south-africa-not-spared-42y41motr) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"Luno cutting a fifth of its workforce – South Africa not spared","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/luno-cutting-a-fifth-of-its-workforce-south-africa-not-spared-42y41motr","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/luno-cutting-a-fifth-of-its-workforce-south-africa-not-spared-42y41motr"},"datePublished":"2026-07-28T13:53:28.066Z","dateModified":"2026-09-14T09:18:16.271Z","description":"Luno, the crypto exchange owned by Digital Currency Group, is cutting 20% of its global workforce and restructuring into three business units. 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CEO James Lanigan announced the cuts alongside a reorganisation into three units: retail exchange plus crypto-as-a-service, stablecoins and wallet infrastructure, and global settlements. Anyone tracking crypto industry job cuts and restructuring can follow ongoing coverage on daily.dev."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"What is Zaru and who backs it?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Zaru is a rand-backed stablecoin launched by Luno in February 2026, described as South Africa's first institutional-grade, reserve-backed rand stablecoin issued by a regulated entity. It enables same-day settlement in rand domestically and internationally at near-zero cost, using an embed-and-license model, with network partners including EasyEquities, Lesaka, Sanlam and Standard Bank. 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