Gobi-backed Bitsmedia reportedly lays off 21 employees

Bitsmedia, the Singapore company behind the Muslim Pro app, laid off 21 employees across four countries in August as part of a cost-cutting restructuring, according to Tech in Asia.

Employees in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Bangladesh were notified on August 31 and terminated the same day, the publication reports, citing a staff letter and affected workers. Seventeen of the eliminated positions were in Singapore. The cuts affected content, marketing, product and business-development teams.

The company is narrowing its priorities

The staff notice described a restructuring intended to align the company's operations with its long-term strategy. Managing director and CEO Nafees Khundker confirmed that job cuts occurred but did not give Tech in Asia an exact figure.

Khundker said Bitsmedia had spent the previous year focusing on the parts of the business with the strongest user and commercial impact. He named the core Muslim Pro experience, subscriptions, fintech, partnerships, charitable giving and pilgrimage services. The restructuring, he said, was part of simplifying how the company operates.

The CEO explicitly said artificial intelligence was not a factor in the decision and that Bitsmedia had no plans for further restructuring at the time. That distinction matters because Muslim Pro has added an AI-powered Islamic chatbot, Ask AiDeen, but the existence of that product does not establish a connection to the layoffs.