cryptobriefing.com
Pump.fun cut employees shortly before their $PUMP token grants were due to vest, according to a Sandmark investigation. Documents and recordings reviewed by the publication indicate that at least one former employee lost a token allocation now worth seven figures.
After rapid expansion, the leading Solana meme coin launchpad laid off employees in late March and early April, the report says. In a recorded meeting, Pump.fun’s co-founder Noah Tweedale told employees that the layoffs were necessary because the company had expanded too quickly.
Workers whose contracts ended in early April reportedly received severance based on tenure, but many were dismissed just weeks before the first tranche of their $PUMP token allocations was scheduled to vest under agreements signed in June 2025.
Pump.fun also faced fresh layoff claims after former employees alleged a second round of job cuts in mid-July.
A newly created X account under the handle “ex pump employee” claimed it had been fired by Baton Corp., the development firm behind pump.fun, after more than a year with the company. The account owner said he was among 40 employees laid off one day before their $PUMP token grants were due to vest.
The user also claimed there were never any plans for a $PUMP airdrop, adding that the company did not believe in “giving free money” to users. Pump.fun has not publicly responded to the allegations.
$PUMP changed hands at about $0.002 at press time, up nearly 5% in the last 24 hours, per CoinGecko. The token has plunged 77% from its all-time high set last September.