By
Chimamanda U. Martha
April 19th, 2024
Brett Harrison recently took aim at the dictatorial and bossy nature exhibited by SBF during his time as FTX US President.
Former president of FTX US, Brett Harrison, recently detailed his experience working closely with disgraced ex-FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF). Describing SBF as emotionally volatile, amongst other things, in a 49-tweet Twitter thread, Harrison wrote:
“My relationship with Sam Bankman-Fried and his deputies had reached a point of total deterioration after months of disputes over management practices at FTX.”
Furthermore, the ex-FTX US president explicitly wrote that SBF pushed back against criticism and avoided conflict. In addition, the embattled former FTX CEO gaslit staff and threatened to fire anyone who proposed solutions to reshape the FTX US management structure.
According to Harrison, “pronounced cracks” began to materialize in his relationship with Bankman-Fried six months into his time with the company. The former FTX US president also pointed out that it was around this time that he began agitating for independence. Harrison strongly advocated for separate and independent executive, legal, and developer teams for FTX US, with which SBF disagreed with. Harrison noted:
“I saw in that early conflict his total insecurity and intransigence when his decisions were questioned, his spitefulness, and the volatility of his temperament. I realized he wasn’t who I remembered.”
The former FTX US president further stated that Bankman-Fried frequently dismissed the collective business acumen of Harrison’s team as worthless. SBF’s stance also resulted in Harrison being isolated from communication on critical decision-making, further frustrating the ex-FTX US president. According to him, SBF threatened to destroy his professional reputation if he kept confronting the once-celebrated FTX chief executive.
SBF Allegedly Not Hands-On with FTX US Affairs
Harrison also added that SBF seemed rarely engaged in the US business. Instead, the disgraced former CEO arbitrarily made decisions affecting FTX US from the Bahamas.
Recalling SBF to be a “sensitive and intellectually curious person” upon first impression, Harrison does not know what led to the “dramatic change.” However, the former FTX US head suspects that mental health issues may have been a causative factor.
Following further workplace volatility for five months, Harrison made a last-gasp attempt to repair FTX US’ organization issues with SBF. He says he wrote a formal complaint to the company’s top brass, detailing the most significant obstacles to success. Harrison also informed SBF and his management inner circle that he would resign if these issues were not addressed.
However, FTX’s management attempted to intimidate Harrison further and instructed him to retract his issued statement formally. In addition, SBF and his cohorts demanded that the ex-FTX US president deliver a pre-drafted apology to the company’s CEO.
Harrison Departure, FTX Collapse
Harrison ultimately left the company, once described as his “dream job,” in late September. His departure came about five weeks before the dramatic collapse of the crypto exchange in early November.
Several weeks after FTX’s demise, SBF was extradited to the US to face criminal charges, including misuse of customer funds.