WorldRemit’s parent company Zepz laying off over 25% of its workforce

Some 420 employees will be impacted by the decision.

Difficult times continue for the fintech sector, with payment group Zepz becoming the latest to announce layoffs this week.

The parent company of WorldRemit and SendWave is planning to reduce the size of its workforce by 26 per cent, impacting some 420 employees globally, a decision first reported by CNBC.

Zepz said the move was prompted by the need to integrate the two vast teams from WorldRemit and SendWave, the African payments firm it acquired in 2020.

“We are excited to operate with a more focused outlook, continuously innovate our offerings with greater efficiency, and evolve the organisation with our customers’ needs top of mind,” said Zepz CEO Mark Lenhard.

“I want to personally thank those leaving the organisation for the impact, investment and change they helped make at Zepz, and acknowledge the legacy these individuals have made for the business.”

Zepz has not had the best luck of late. 

After a bumper $292m Series E funding round in 2021, the company was poised to IPO the following year until huge internal accounting issues derailed the process and led to a new CEO and management team being brought in.

Last year new CEO Mark Lenhard announced the company had reached monthly operating profitability less than a month into his new tenure, a milestone that the company confirmed this week had continued into 2023.

Once the layoffs are complete, Zepz says its new structure will allow it to expand into over 30 new countries in 2023 while also pursuing customer growth via “M&As, talent collaboration, integration and as necessary, consolidation”.