Policygenius lays off workers at Durham office

Policygenius, a New York insurance technology company with a large presence in Durham, has laid off 170 employees, the company confirmed in an email to Axios.

• Yes, but: Not all of the 170 people laid off were based in Durham.

Why it matters: Policygenius, which operates a marketplace where users can compare different insurance policies, made the staffing cutbacks just a few months after announcing a funding round of $125 million in March.

• Tech stocks and valuations have been hurt by rising interest rates and inflation since then.
• Layoffs at startups have slowly been ticking up this year, according to data tracked at layoffs.fyi.

The company's CEO, Jennifer Fitzgerald, shared on LinkedIn a list of "Policygenius alums" that other companies should consider hiring.

• On the list — which wasn't exhaustive — were around 30 workers in the Triangle and a handful in Charlotte.
• One laid off employee wrote on LinkedIn he was part of 25% reduction in staff.

Based in New York, Policygenius opened a second headquarters in downtown Durham in 2019, after receiving an incentives package worth up to $5 million from the state.

• To receive those incentives, Policygenius promised to hire 377 workers in Durham by 2024. The company only receives the incentives if it hits hiring and investment milestones set by the state.
• Policygenius' Durham office had around 200 employees, The News & Observer reported in March.

What they're saying: Policygenius did not make any executives available to comment. But, in a statement, Fitzgerald said the layoffs came in response to "the sudden and dramatic shift in the economy."

• "After careful consideration, we announced the difficult and necessary decision to reduce the size of our workforce," Fitzgerald said in the statement. "With these changes, we remain confident in the future of our company, our continued innovation, and the excellent service we continue to provide our customers every day."