"We are cutting the roster down": FaZe Banks explains why the organization is letting go of streamers and creators

Richard “FaZe Banks" recently made a startling revelation. The founder and future CEO of FaZe Clan revealed that the organization is cutting down on the number of streamers and creators on the roster. Following his appointment as CEO, Banks announced his plans for rebranding FaZeClan, stating that all employees within the organization would be “fired”.

Now, in an appearance on the podcast Rawtalk with Bradley Martin, he has confirmed that he followed through with his plan, resulting in a substantial downsizing of the company.

According to Banks, FaZe Clan has cut down 110 employees during the rebrand, with the workforce going from 140 to 30. He also mentioned that he plans to ideally reduce the number to 10. He commented:

“We’re definitely cutting the roster down significantly”

FaZe Banks specified that they are cutting down on all types of people, including content creators, keeping only those who are dedicated to the goal. He said:

“Us paying members to put FaZe in their name…that doesn’t work. It’s whack, I want no part of that, it doesn’t do anything for either side”

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FaZe Clan is undergoing a rebranding post the merger with GameSquare, headed by FaZe Banks

FaZe Clan, one of the biggest American esports organizations, went through a merger and board reshuffle last year.

In October 2023, the company was acquired by GameSquare, the owners of Code Red Esports and Complexity Gaming. CEO Lee Trink was fired and replaced by Christoph Pachler. FaZe Banks is all set to take over the role soon.

Banks’ strategy of aggressive downsizing has been met with mostly positive reactions from the Clan community. Many commended the attempt to bring the organization, which was founded in 2010 and has seen its fair share of controversies, back to its roots. One compared the strategy to that of Offline TV. The commentator said:

“I get what he’s saying. Look at OTV, the reason why they’ve (somehow) been around for as long as they have is because they kept the roster small, close-knit, and everyone is on the same page like what he’s envisioning here. He wants FaZe to be more like them than 100T.”

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FaZe Clan had enjoyed a highly successful image in its early years, managing teams across different esports titles and social media platforms like Twitch and Snapchat. The company was valued at close to $1 billion near the end of 2021. However, it faced heavy losses under former CEO Trink’s leadership, which according to Bloomberg, included a loss of $48.7 million in 2022.

In 2023 alone, the company announced two rounds of layoffs. With a change in strategy and rebranding, it waits to be seen whether FaZe Banks’ aggressive plans pay off in the end.