Coinfloor, a UK-based exchange, is cutting staff amid a notable period of calm in crypto-asset prices. Sources dispute the precise number of employees cut, although the count seems to be roughly 40. Coinfloor did not respond to CryptoGlobe’s request for precise numbers as of press time.

By way of explanation, Obi Nwosu, Coinfloor’s CEO, told Bloomberg:

[w]e are currently working on a business restructure to ensure that we focus on our competitive advantages in the marketplace.

Despite being the UK’s oldest bitcoin exchange, Coinfloor recorded a mere $23.5 million in volume in the last month, compared to roughly $3.2 billion on Coinbase, and $30.8 billion on Binance (adjusted volume). The exchange’s daily volume at press time was about £500,000, according to CryptoCompare.

Nwosu explained to Financial News London (FNL) that the exchange had “seen significant change in trade volume across the market”. The exchange, which according to FNL is focussed on institutional investors, was one of the first to offer physically-settled bitcoin futures contracts. In 2017, Coinfloor began no-fee trading of bitcoin denominated crypto-assets.

“It’s not that exciting anymore”

Trouble for such an institutionally-focussed exchange could suggest little appetite in the City for crypto-assets. Coinfloor’s cuts come at a time of declining volume for crypto-assets across the board, as bitcoin’s price volatility has reached an 18-month low.

Decreased volatility often means decreased interest from professional traders and investors. One such trader, Stephen Innes, confirmed such thinking to Bloomberg regarding the crypto-asset market, saying that “[i]t’s been pretty flat for so long now”, and that “[t]hat doesn’t really entice investors.”

This kind of short-term thinking may not represent the entire profession, however, as CryptoGlobe recently reported on the long-term commitment to trading crypto-assets of other professional traders, despite the present calm in the markets.