Escrow.com Cuts Work Force by 30

Escrow.com Inc., a heavily backed Santa Ana online real estate services operation, said Wednesday that it has cut its work force by 30 full-time, part-time and contract employees.

The company, controlled by title insurance giant Fidelity National Financial Inc., did not disclose how many employees remained. Executives were unavailable for comment.

Escrow.com said in a press release that it laid off the workers to maintain efficient operations and to protect its position as a market leader in handling escrow and settlements in business-to-business transactions.

The company, which last year picked up $30 million in funding from such high-profile Internet investors as Softbank Corp., has tried to position itself as a haven for businesses that distrust electronic commerce but still want to buy big-ticket items online.

The company was founded in the fall of 1999 as a unit of Micro General Corp., which is 70% owned by Fidelity.