Singapore-based Bitsmedia, the company behind the Muslim Pro lifestyle app, has retrenched 21 employees across Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Bangladesh as part of a restructuring exercise.
The layoffs affected 17 employees in Singapore, including 14 Singaporeans. The affected roles were primarily in the content, marketing, product and business development teams, with employees having served the company for periods ranging from about six months to more than five years.
Employees were informed of the retrenchment on Aug. 31 and had their employment terminated on the same day. Some affected workers said they had been asked to report to the office without being told beforehand that a retrenchment exercise was taking place.
According to accounts from former employees, workers were called individually into a meeting room and informed that their positions had been made redundant. Some said the process was emotionally difficult, with colleagues becoming distressed as they realised what was happening.
Bitsmedia said the layoffs were part of cost-saving measures and a broader restructuring aimed at aligning the company with its long-term strategic plans.
Chief executive officer and managing director Nafees Khundker confirmed the retrenchment but did not disclose the exact breakdown of affected employees. He said the restructuring would focus resources on areas with the strongest user and commercial impact, including subscriptions, fintech, partnerships and pilgrimage services. The company also said artificial intelligence was not a factor in the decision and that it does not currently plan further restructuring.
Bitsmedia was founded in 2009 and developed Muslim Pro into a global Muslim lifestyle platform. The company says its products have reached more than 180 million downloads across more than 190 countries, with Muslim Pro among its main products.
The latest retrenchment comes as technology companies in Singapore and the wider region continue to adjust their workforces amid changing business conditions and efforts to control costs.
For the affected employees, however, the immediate impact has been the loss of their jobs following a restructuring that the company says is intended to concentrate resources on its longer-term priorities.
