Pump.fun has reportedly dismissed employees shortly before their PUMP token grants were scheduled to vest, leaving at least one former worker without an allocation now valued at seven figures. According to an investigation by Sandmark, the company reduced its workforce in late March and early April after rapidly expanding its operations. Documents and internal recordings showed that some employees lost their jobs shortly before their PUMP allocations were due to begin vesting.
Token Vesting Schedule
Workers had signed token grant agreements in June 2025, with the first 25% of their allocations set to vest after one year, followed by additional releases over time. Contracts were terminated in early April, with affected workers receiving severance payments but having their unvested PUMP allocations canceled.
Allegations of Further Layoffs
New allegations surfaced after former workers claimed that Baton Corp., the company behind Pump.fun, conducted another round of layoffs in mid-July. A former employee alleged that about 40 employees were dismissed one day before their PUMP grants were scheduled to vest.
Market Impact
The allegations could increase scrutiny of how crypto companies structure token grants and whether employment termination clauses allow firms to cancel large allocations shortly before vesting. The dispute centers on employee compensation rather than tokens already held by public investors.
