Would you join Kraken - Crypto industry?
Got a ping from Kraken recruiter for a data analytics lead role. Not at all sure about this company so checking here! Is it even worth thinking!? I mean is it safe!? Any thoughts Current : Data analyst at Meta #tech #crypto #kraken
No
Can you Dm Kraken recruiter info?
Not at this time
No
No Kraken. I would not join it. Too specific, not diversified, and many other reasons..
Stay away. Most crypto firms have already had a bunch of lay offs but Kraken has not, so it's bound to come soon. While it's a good thing that the toxic CEO finally stepped down, the overall culture is still very toxic and the company is currently in litigation with ex-employees for writing glassdoor reviews. Culture from the top is very reactionary / right wing libertarian (which I guess could be seen as a pro to some of you on Blind). Ex-CEO did this whole screed against pronouns in a company Slack and then told people they should quit if they disagreed. Then came out with a culture policy that banned anyone from labeling anyone as "toxic" or "racist". They've also been fined extensively for violating CTFC laws around KYC and sanctions, as well as refused to comply with an NY AG investigation, so just your typical shady crypto firm nonsense. On a personal note, I was contacted by a recruiter there during the start of pandemic and they set up a zoom interview, recruiter didn't show up to the zoom, and then ghosted. Then was hit up by a completely different recruiter a few weeks later inviting me to the "second round" with the hiring manager, set up zoom interview, no one showed up again. Followed up with second recruiter immediately, no response, followed up a few days later, the recruiter's email didn't work..... Then I read up a little more about the company and realized I dodged a bullet. Honestly, don't waste your time unless you are desperate and have no other options because the comp isn't even that competitive.
I, for the record, take no pleasure in being right about the layoffs that just happened. Meta, hope you didn't bite.
Fully regulated? Crypto bros got jokes. Kraken might claim it's "fully regulated" just like Coinbase does or any other crypto service, but let's be specific? Regulated by whom? The SEC? Oh wait, the SEC refuses to categorize crypto as a security, so no, except for certain ICO events that are deemed to be securities/limited offerings. The CFTC? Also, no, since the CFTC only gets involved when virtual currency is used in a derivatives contract or when there is fraud involving digital currencies traded in interstate commerce, so basically uh, only jumping in when Kraken does illegal shit like unregistered margin trading (what's that? Kraken has already been fined for unregistered margin trading? Interesting). What actual regulatory authority in the US "fully regulates" Kraken? Kraken claims that it's regulated by FinCEN. Oh, really? Didn't realize that was a currency regulatory authority. Fun fact: FinCEN and OFAC also only get involved when Kraken specifically breaks anti-money laundering laws like the Bank Secrecy Act. OFAC gets involved when Kraken breaks sanctions law and allows users from sanctioned countries to utilize their trading services (which according to OFAC we're also about to see some fines levied against Kraken for in the coming months). The government cracking down on you when you break laws tangential to your central business is not the definition of "fully regulated". It's explicitly a false and misleading statement to investors for Kraken to claim that its "fully regulated". Kraken mentioning FinCEN as their main regulator is akin to them claiming they're "fully regulated" by the IRS because they'll get fined for not doing their taxes. The reality is that federal regulatory law has not caught up with crypto and actual regulatory authorities like the SEC and CFTC are throwing crypto around like a hot potato as a result and refusing to take ownership. In instances where there actually is legal regulatory precedence for example, when the New York AG tried to get involved in 2018 under suspicion that Kraken was not doing an adequate job protecting their customers from market manipulation, what did Kraken do? Oh right, they refused to cooperate with the AG investigation so the Attorney General came out with a report warning customers that Kraken was likely breaking the law and to stay away from it. Please stop it with this "fully regulated" nonsense and leave those determinations to the people who actually work in financial industry regulation. I get that you might not fully understand what this stuff means so you're just going to regurgitate the line that your employer has fed you from the start, but perpetuating these misinformation is a net disservice to all prospective investors. It's also explicitly misleading and patently false. P.S. Kraken being an American firm has no bearing on US regulators' ability to regulate it. Do you also think international big banks aren't regulated by FINRA and the SEC by virtue of them being based outside the US? lmao
Here's a tldr for people who have trouble reading multiple paragraphs: any crypto exchange that claims it's "fully regulated" in the US is always 100% lying and willfully misleading investors. Grounds for that claim is in the previous comment where I break it down by governmental agency.
Lol crypto is a complete scam, literally all the exchanges are just waiting to rug pull their customers.