Coinbase has seen their stock price plummet by 80% in the last 6 months. For comparison, the NASDAQ is down 25% and the Russell 3000 is down 16% over that same period. In other words, Coinbase has performed much worse than most other equities.

This decline in stock price was exacerbated by the recent crash in crypto prices and a large net income loss in Coinbase's most recent quarterly results.

All of this to say, investors' confidence in Coinbase has been absolutely rattled. An announcement of a hiring slowdown/freeze or layoffs could accelerate the Coinbase sell off if it is misinterpreted as evidence of a meltdown of the business. So Coinbase is trying to get out in front of and own the message around their change in hiring patterns. "We are acting as good stewards of your investment, and no reason to panic."

This post surely addresses many stakeholder groups, but investors seem to be the primary constituency that is being reassured.