Former FTX.US President Brett Harrison Breaks Silence, Says He Was Isolated From Decision Making by SBF

Brett Harrison, former chief executive at FTX.US, has broken his silence on the high-profile collapse of FTX.

Harrison stepped down from FTX.US, the American branch of Sam Bankman-Fried’s (SBF) crypto empire, less than two months before the collapse.

In a 49-tweet-long thread on Twitter, Harrison says that his relationship with Bankman-Fried began to sour about six months into his tenure with the firm after he and SBF clashed over the independence of FTX.US.

“Around then, I began advocating strongly for establishing separation and independence for the executive, legal and developer teams of FTX US, and Sam disagreed.

I saw in that early conflict his total insecurity and intransigence when his decisions were questioned, his spitefulness, and the volatility of his temperament.”

After continued disagreements, including ones about hiring policies, staffing issues and communication between FTX and FTX.US, Harrison says he was ultimately isolated from all major decision making. Nearly a year into his tenure, Harrison says he made a formal complaint but was punished for it.

“In early April 2022, my eleventh month, I made one last try. I made a written formal complaint about what I saw to be the largest organizational problems inhibiting FTX’s future success. I wrote that I would resign if the problems weren’t addressed.

In response, I was threatened on Sam’s behalf that I would be fired and that Sam would destroy my professional reputation. I was instructed to formally retract what I’d written and to deliver an apology to Sam that had been drafted for me.”

Harrison says that he thinks the reason he and FTX.US were isolated from decision making was to compartmentalize the firm’s secrets and “criminal activity,” which he denies having involvement in or any knowledge of.

“It’s clear from what has been made public that the scheme was held closely by Sam and his inner circle at FTX. com and Alameda, which I was not a part of, nor were other executives at FTX US.

I understand now why they carefully concealed their criminal activity from us. We have extensive professional networks, our own lines of communication with US regulators and our own authority to speak to US media.

If any one of us had suspected let alone learned the truth, we would have reported them immediately.”

Featured Image: Shutterstock/Tithi Luadthong