Transaction company Stripe announces layoff of 14% of staff in anticipation of 'leaner times'

Financial transaction company Stripe announced on Thursday that it would be laying off a whopping 14% of its workforce as it braces for economic turmoil after having overshot its hiring goals through the course of the pandemic. 

Company CEO Patrick Collison said in a memo on Thursday that the corporation would be "reducing the size of our team by around 14%," a result of what Collison called "a different economic climate" ushered in by 2022. 

Collision wrote that Stripe "is fundamentally well-positioned to weather harsh circumstances," but that it needs "to match the pace of our investments with the realities around us."

"Today, that means building differently for leaner times," Collision said, writing that the company was "much too optimistic about the internet economy’s near-term growth in 2022 and 2023" and that it "underestimated both the likelihood and impact of a broader slowdown."

Collison said the company would be providing a generous severance package, including six months' healthcare, 14 weeks of severance pay, a bonus, and other offerings.