CryptoWatch: Binance's Referral Program, Massive Energy Consumption, and Nansen's Workforce Cuts

In this week of CryptoWatch, the team has looked into the massive developments in the blockchain industry, including the significant workforce cuts over at Nansen, the energy consumption made by crypto transactions, and the 2023 Binance Referral Program.

The industry is still seeing the rising fame of the coins despite the dwindling prices on the market, but it still sees continuous development. Still, everything surrounding the crypto industry affects its overall state, even with workforce cuts and the transactional energy used in its everyday operations.

Crypto Transactions' Energy Consumption is Massive

One may think that cryptocurrency mining is the only energy horde that gravely affects power grids and other natural resources, but little is known to the public that all crypto transactions are guilty of it.

The White House Office of Science and Technology said that global electricity usage for cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin, ranges from 120 to 240 billion kilowatt-hours per year, with the United States being the leader.

Still, crypto mining contributes a lot to the stress put on energy grids as we know it, and it is still one of the top contributors to depleting the world's natural resources.

According to Dr. Le Xie, a professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Texas A&M University, crypto mining is one of the most flexible during times when the grid is stressed, with the miners shutting down operations.

Crypto transactions have also surpassed the annual consumption of entire countries like Argentina and Australia, as per the reports.

Workforce Cuts in Crypto Firm, Nansen

The Blockchain Analytics platform, Nansen, has recently decided to cut its workforce by as much as 30 percent, and this downsizing of the company is due to the significant challenges that the company faced, as well as the entire crypto industry.

Nansen CEO Alex Svanevik confirmed this via a tweet, affirming the company's decision to push through with the layoffs that will help keep its company afloat.

"I'm endlessly grateful to the incredible people we are parting ways with. They will go on to achieve great things, and we'll ensure they get a soft landing, with severance and support," said Svanevik.

Nansen saw unprecedented growth in the past years and has hired people to be part of the team, but these are not part of the company's core strategies and operations. Moreover, the crypto's volatility has also affected its state in the market, hence the layoffs now.

Binance's Referral Program

Most apps have a referral program that will give you perks, but one of the most iconic companies to have this is Binance, the renowned crypto exchange company. Their latest promotion centers on giving away as much as $100 for the person who can refer people to the app and have them create an account for the said platform.

This is under the Lite Referral program, where users would have until June 15 to invite people to create an account and verify their identity on the platform.

However, the catch is that users need to gather as much as $100 to withdraw it, as different user signups differ in value, with the first one giving users only $8.