Sam Bankman-Fried, the disgraced former CEO of the collapsed FTX exchange, has broken his silence on Twitter after two years, using the platform to offer a series of candid reflections on firing employees and corporate management.
His posts, published on Monday evening, have stirred intrigue, especially from those within the crypto industry who have watched his every move since FTX's infamous downfall in late 2022.
"Firing people is one of the hardest things to do in the world. It sucks for everyone involved," he wrote, offering insight into the complexities of managing layoffs.
He stressed that terminations are often a result of "the company just doesn’t have the right job for them," despite the employee's qualifications.
The former billionaire expressed empathy for government employees, saying, "I have a lot of sympathy for gov’t employees: I, too, have not checked my email for the past few (hundred) days," before acknowledging the challenges of unemployment.
Bankman-Fried, who is currently facing a 25-year sentence for fraud and embezzlement related to FTX's collapse, also remarked that "being unemployed is a lot less relaxing than it looks," a sentiment from a man whose fortune evaporated almost overnight.
Bankman-Fried's return to social media coincided with another high-profile figure’s controversial stance on employee accountability—Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
Last week, Musk issued a direct challenge to federal employees, demanding they justify their weekly work accomplishments via email.
"Failure to respond will be taken as a resignation," Musk wrote on Saturday.
Musk’s directive, which came with a stern ultimatum, spurred federal employees into action, although some, like FBI Director Kash Patel, have urged their staff to hold off on responding.
The Department of Government Efficiency-DOGE, headed by the Dogecoin (DOGE) enthusiast initiative, is also reportedly exploring the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to assess the responses of federal employees.
DOGE, previously co-led by businessman Vivek Ramaswamy along with Musk, is focused on cutting government spending, slashing regulations, and improving operational efficiencies across U.S. government agencies.
While unverified, reports hint at AI analyzing these responses, drawing concerns as there are already lawsuits challenging its use in decision-making.
Just last week, Bankman-Fried praised Musk's "chainsaw approach" to cutting through government bureaucracy while courting U.S. President Donald Trump and Musk for a presidential pardon.
He pointed to the need for overhauling inefficient systems, noting, "Some things actually do need more than a 10% cut," he said, referring to Musk's emphasis on streamlining government operations.
Pseudonymous users in the crypto community were quick to point out a surge in interest surrounding the so-called "SBF coin," a meme coin based on the former FTX CEO’s name, which saw a rapid rise just before his tweets.
SBF Coin has jumped 8.4% in the last 6 hours, trading at a price of $0.003, while FTX’s token FTT briefly rose 32% to $2.07, DexScreener data shows.
Edited by Sebastian Sinclair