Robinhood's Second Layoff in Four Months Revealed the Fragility of its Pandemic Hiring Spree

Robinhood cut 23% of staff in August 2022, its second reduction in four months, as retail trading volumes dried up. The company had aggressively hired through 2020–2021 to handle surging users and regulatory demands. When meme-stock volatility and crypto enthusiasm faded, revenue from transaction fees and margin lending collapsed, leaving the inflated cost base unsustainable. The August cut showed the April round had not gone far enough.