- According to sources quoted by Chinese media, Bitmain, one of the leading manufacturers of Bitcoin mining equipment, has suspended salaries and other incentives.
- The report detailed that the company is particularly concerned about orders for new mining machines and decided to suspend some employee payments for the month of September.
- Mining hardware manufacturer Bitmain is attempting to recover from some lost ground. Recently, they introduced a new addition to their Antminer product lineup, the high-efficiency S21 series.
Mining hardware manufacturer Bitmain has stopped salaries and other incentives, according to recent reports: What’s going on at Bitmain?
Bitmain Suspends Salary Payments
According to a media report, Bitmain, the mining hardware manufacturer, has temporarily suspended salary payments to its employees. This move is believed to be linked to negative financial results in the operations of the crypto giant.
Sources quoted by Chinese media suggest that Bitmain has suspended salaries and other incentives. According to these insiders, Bitmain has claimed that the cash flow for September didn’t turn out as expected.
The report elaborated that the company is particularly concerned about orders for new mining machines and decided to suspend some employee payments for the month of September. Payments are expected to be made toward the end of October, depending on how the situation develops.
As of Sunday, Bitmain employees had not received their salaries for the past month and end-of-year bonuses for 2022. This suspension has affected all performance bonuses, including half of the basic salaries, according to a news portal.
In the first quarter of 2023, Bitmain introduced a new salary structure. Initial fixed salaries were divided into two parts, basic salary and performance pay, with the latter being determined based on employees’ ranks in the company.
Bitmain once held over 70% of the application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) mining unit market but was affected by an internal conflict between its co-founders, Jihan Wu and Micree Zhan. This conflict reportedly revolved around a “personnel optimization plan.”
The mining hardware manufacturer is attempting to regain some lost ground. They recently introduced a new addition, the high-efficiency S21 series, to their Antminer product lineup. Additionally, in August, the company announced a $54 million investment in hosting provider Core Scientific.
Crypto Companies Facing Challenges
Many crypto companies have attempted to cut expenses, including labor costs, due to a falling market and increasing regulatory challenges. For instance, significant layoffs have occurred at major players in the industry, such as Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange.
In April of this year, it was reported that Chinese authorities penalized Bitmain for allegedly not withholding and paying individual income tax from perks provided to its employees, such as travel allowances. These reports coincided with a period of increased tax scrutiny in the industry.
