Memecoin launchpad Pump.fun, built on Solana, has allegedly laid off employees just two months before their PUMP token allocations were set to vest. According to a report by Sandmark and internal documents, the company terminated contracts in early April, and a second wave followed in mid-July, totaling over 40 laid-off staff.
Co-founder Noah Tweedale reportedly told employees in late March that the company was “growing too fast” and the team struggled to adapt. Affected staff were offered one week’s severance per month worked, but the core loss stemmed from unvested tokens. Under the June 2025 token allocation agreement, 25% of tokens were to unlock in June 2026. At least one former employee lost an allocation worth over $1 million at current prices, despite the PUMP token having fallen 79% from its 2025 peak of $0.0089.
An anonymous account “ExPumpEmployee” shared alleged layoff emails, claiming termination occurred just one day before unlock. Pump.fun had rapid growth in late 2024, with over 20.8 million Solana tokens created and total revenue near $1.3 billion. Daily revenue remains around $1 million. The layoffs raise concerns about the platform’s financial stability and treatment of staff, potentially affecting token value and investor sentiment.
