ShareChat: Indian social media unicorn fires 20% of staff

ShareChat is expected to lay off around 500 people

Indian unicorn ShareChat has laid off around 20% of its workforce in a bid to cut costs amid global headwinds.

Mohalla Tech, which owns the video-sharing app, said it made the "difficult" decision due to concerns of a sustained economic downturn.

The company, which employs around 2,200 people, laid off hundreds of people who were in management roles, financial website Moneycontrol reported.

Sharechat is the latest in a series of tech firms that have cut jobs recently.

Tech giants such as Meta, Twitter and Amazon have laid off thousands of employees over the past few months, affecting several Indians working in the US who are on visas such as the H-1B. Many of them may have to return to India if they don't find another job in time.

According to the Layoffs.fyi website, which tracks tech job cuts, more than 24,000 workers around the world have been laid off just in 2023 so far. The website, set up by a US-based entrepreneur named Roger Lee, sources the figures from media announcements.

In India, tech start-ups Unacademy, Moglix, upGrad, and LEAD have all announced layoffs since 1 January.

Several Indian unicorns are facing pressure from investors to cut costs amid concerns over high valuations and global economic conditions.

Sharechat, India's first homegrown social network, offers content in Indian languages. It is backed by tech firms such as Google and Temasek and had raised $300m (£246m) in fresh funding last year. It also counts Twitter, Snap Inc and Tiger Global among its investors.

In December, however, the company shut down its online fantasy gaming platform Jeet11 and laid off nearly 100 employees.

In a statement, a ShareChat spokesperson said that "as capital becomes expensive, companies need to prioritise their bets and invest in the highest-impact projects only".

"The decision to reduce employee costs was taken after much deliberations and in light of growing market consensus that investment sentiments will remain very cautious throughout this year," the spokesperson added.

ShareChat, which is based in Bangalore (also known as Bengaluru), is valued at around $5b and says it has around 180 million monthly active users.

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