Genesis Global Trading is laying off 20% of its 260-strong workforce weeks after it emerged that the cryptocurrency lender and brokerage firm has a claim of $1.2 billion against now-bankrupt hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC).

Recent court filings revealed that Genesis lent $2.4 billion to 3AC to the now-bankrupt crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital which put down 50% collateral on the loan. After liquidating the collateral, Genesis' parent company Digital Currency Group (DCG) remains 3AC's biggest creditor.

As part of the plan to cut staff, chief executive officer Michael Moro, who has been in the role since early 2016, is also set to quit the business. Genesis has appointed chief operating officer Derar Islim, who joined the firm in May 2020, as interim CEO. Tom Conheeney, the former president of hedge fund SAC Capital and its successor Point72 Asset Management, is to join Genesis as a board member and senior adviser.