Lazada Layoffs: E-Commerce Firm to Cut 5% of Southeast Asian Workforce

KUALA LUMPUR, June, 2026 — Regional e-commerce platform Lazada will retrench around 5% of its Southeast Asian workforce, including staff in Singapore, as the company moves toward a leaner operating model amid tougher competition and shifting market conditions.

A Lazada spokesperson confirmed on June 23 that the company is “reviewing selected roles across Southeast Asia,” adding that affected employees will be engaged with care, respect and dignity.

The company said the review is based on business needs, role requirements and organisational efficiency, while The Business Times reported that the cuts affect about 5% of Lazada’s workforce across Southeast Asia.

Lazada operates across six Southeast Asian markets: Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines. The company has not disclosed the exact number of employees affected in each market.

The latest job cuts mark another major restructuring move for Lazada, which last carried out layoffs in January 2024. That earlier retrenchment affected both senior and junior employees across local and regional roles.

This time, Lazada said it is working closely with the Food, Drinks and Allied Workers Union in Singapore to ensure support is provided to affected employees and that the process is handled responsibly.

FDAWU general-secretary Sankaradass S. Chami said Lazada had informed the union in advance about the job cuts, a move seen as a more constructive approach compared with the company’s previous retrenchment exercise in 2024.

In January 2024, Lazada faced criticism from the National Trades Union Congress and FDAWU after carrying out layoffs without first notifying or consulting the union. FDAWU described that move as “unacceptable” and escalated the matter to Singapore’s Ministry of Manpower.

The current restructuring is being monitored by Singapore’s Taskforce for Responsible Retrenchment and Employment Facilitation, while Malay Mail reported that Lazada’s packages align with the Tripartite Advisory on Managing Excess Manpower and Responsible Retrenchment.

The layoffs also reflect wider pressure in Southeast Asia’s e-commerce industry. The sector is still growing, but the period of rapid hiring, heavy subsidies and “growth at all costs” has slowed as platforms face pressure to control costs and improve profitability.

Derrick Teo, chief executive of manpower consultancy Elitez Group, said e-commerce platforms are now expected to handle more transactions while controlling costs and improving profitability. He added that technology and artificial intelligence are helping companies operate more efficiently, meaning growth may no longer require the same level of headcount expansion seen during the pandemic.

However, The Business Times reported that Lazada’s latest cuts are not part of any artificial intelligence initiative, although AI is becoming an increasingly important part of Lazada’s broader strategy and may influence future team structures.

The restructuring follows similar moves by other e-commerce players. Shopee reportedly cut about 8% of its global developer workforce earlier in June, while Amazon reduced staff in Singapore after shifting its focus away from local grocery fulfilment toward international product shipments.

This suggests the latest Lazada layoffs are not an isolated case, but part of a broader restructuring trend across the digital economy, especially among companies that expanded quickly during the pandemic-driven online shopping boom.

Founded in 2012, Lazada became a subsidiary of Alibaba Group in 2016 and remains one of Southeast Asia’s major e-commerce platforms.

In Singapore, Lazada remains the second-largest e-commerce player behind Shopee, but its estimated regional market share declined in 2025 as competitors grew faster, according to comments reported by The Straits Times.

The company’s headquarters in Singapore are based at Lazada One on Bras Basah Road, where affected employees were reportedly notified directly by the human resources team.

Postings on LinkedIn suggest that Lazada has about 760 employees in Singapore, though the company has not confirmed the exact number of local roles affected by the latest retrenchment.

The cuts also come after online chatter about possible Lazada job losses appeared on Reddit around two weeks before the company confirmed the restructuring.

Industry observers say the layoffs show that Southeast Asia’s e-commerce sector is entering a more mature phase. Instead of chasing market share through aggressive subsidies and rapid hiring, platforms are now focusing more on cost discipline, operational efficiency and long-term profitability.

This shift is especially important because competition in the region remains intense. Lazada faces pressure from Shopee, TikTok Shop, Amazon, local marketplaces and social-commerce players across multiple countries.

For workers, the layoffs highlight continued uncertainty in the technology and digital commerce sectors. Many companies that expanded aggressively during the pandemic are now reassessing roles, reducing duplication and reorganising teams to match slower post-pandemic growth.

For Lazada, the key challenge is to maintain competitiveness while reducing costs. A leaner operating model may help the company improve efficiency, but it also raises questions about whether service quality, seller support, logistics performance and innovation capacity can remain strong.

The company’s decision to coordinate with FDAWU this time may also help reduce labour relations pressure, particularly after criticism over how the 2024 layoffs were handled.

From a business perspective, Lazada’s restructuring shows that major e-commerce firms are preparing for a tougher operating environment. Profitability, automation, marketplace efficiency and customer retention are becoming more important than pure expansion.

The move also reflects wider changes in Southeast Asia’s digital economy. Investors and parent companies are increasingly demanding clearer returns, stronger margins and better cost management from online platforms.

Although Lazada remains a major e-commerce player, the latest layoffs suggest that even established platforms must adapt quickly as competition intensifies and consumer behaviour evolves.

Lazada’s decision to cut 5% of its Southeast Asian workforce is a major update for the region’s e-commerce industry. It signals a shift from rapid growth toward leaner operations, stronger cost control and a more mature phase of digital commerce.

The development is suitable for Update News because it involves a current corporate restructuring, regional job cuts, e-commerce market pressure, labour-management coordination and wider changes in Southeast Asia’s digital economy.