Report: State Street Cuts Jobs in Reorganization of Digital Assets Arm

State Street Corp. has reportedly cut “a handful” of jobs as it reorganizes its digital assets division, State Street Digital. 

Most of the division’s employees have moved to other units of the company, Bloomberg Law reported Thursday (Jan. 18). 

State Street Digital had a staff of about 100 at the end of 2023, according to the report. 

Reached for comment by PYMNTS, a State Street spokesperson provided a statement saying that the company continues to provide clients with services and market infrastructure for digital assets.

For example, State Street provides services to three of the newly-approved bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

“In an effort to better deliver our digital expertise and solutions to clients, we have brought together our traditional custody and digital finance in a seamless interoperable customer experience,” the statement said. “This approach is reducing fragmentation for clients and is making the digital transition as easy as possible for investors. As part of integrating State Street Digital into our traditional custody product group, we have embedded key roles and functions into our broader custody product team.”

A provider of financial services to institutional investors, State Street announced organizational changes on Oct. 30, saying in a press release that, among other things, Investment Services client facing activities would be further consolidated. 

“These organizational model changes will position State Street’s Investment Services business for long-term success, as it executes on its strategy, accelerates revenue growth, and continues to deliver for clients and shareholders,” the release said. “The realignment further strengthens its executional capabilities, streamlines decision making and provides clients with more efficient delivery of products, services and solutions.” 

In March, State Street and crypto custody firm Copper mutually decided to end their licensing agreement and continue building on their digital strategies separately. 

“Over the past few years, State Street has built a knowledgeable and experienced team within State Street Digital and engaged with a number of vendors and partners, including Copper,” State Street said in a statement provided to PYMNTS at the time. “This experience, as well as feedback from our clients on their aspirations in the digital space, has reinforced our focus towards the creation of a multi-faceted solution for both tokenized securities as well as native tokens.” 

State Street’s reorganization comes at a time when several prominent companies have announced plans to cut jobs as they push for efficiency and cost reduction. 

During the first two weeks of the new year, Amazon, Citigroup, Xerox, Google and BlackRock were among those who reduced their workforce. 

Despite improving economic conditions and a strong labor market, these companies are looking to trim their workforces and streamline operations. Some have said their companies are still larger than necessary given the size of their businesses; some have diverted resources toward the development of artificial intelligence (AI); and some have sought to right-size their workforce after expanding during the pandemic.