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Coinbase plans to expand its Singapore workforce to about 200 employees by the end of 2026, up from around 150, country director Hassan Ahmed told The Business Times. The hiring push comes less than three months after the exchange announced plans to cut about 700 jobs globally as part of a cost-cutting shift toward AI.
Singapore Team’s Headcount Will Rise by One-Third
The planned hiring would increase Coinbase’s Singapore team by about 33%. Country director Hassan Ahmed identified engineering, customer service, relationship management, and institutional sales as the main areas expected to grow.
Coinbase also opened a new Singapore office during the week of the announcement. The company plans to use the larger team to support crypto and stablecoin services in Singapore and other Asian markets. The company plans to use the larger team to support its crypto and stablecoin services in the region.
Country director Hassan Ahmed identified engineering and infrastructure on the technical side and customer service, relationship management, and institutional sales on the client-facing side as the main areas expected to grow.
Coinbase’s careers page already lists engineering jobs based in Singapore. The openings include roles linked to trading systems and blockchain infrastructure.
Expansion Comes After Global Layoffs
Coinbase announced in May that it would cut about 14% of its global workforce, equal to roughly 700 positions. The exchange expected the restructuring to cost between $50 million and $60 million, mainly through severance and other employee benefits.
CEO Brian Armstrong said weaker crypto trading, the need to control costs, and increased use of AI contributed to the restructuring. Ahmed struck a similar note from the Singapore side:
“Digital assets and AI are effectively colliding. We are very excited about the potential of AI.”
Singapore Remains Coinbase’s Asia Hub
Coinbase has held a Major Payment Institution license from the Monetary Authority of Singapore since 2023. The license allows its local entity to provide regulated digital payment token and cross-border money transfer services.
The company also launched its Singapore engineering hub in 2024 with support from the Singapore Economic Development Board. The hub was designed to develop local technical talent and support Coinbase’s products across Asia-Pacific markets.
Coinbase already supports local payment methods in Singapore and offers trading in XSGD, a Singapore dollar-backed stablecoin. Coinbase has not announced how many of the 50 new jobs will go to each department. It has also not published a detailed hiring schedule for reaching the 200-employee target by year-end.
