Twitter Inc’s new owner Elon Musk on Thursday raised the possibility of the social media platform going bankrupt, capping a chaotic day that included a warning from a US privacy regulator and the exit of the company’s trust and safety leader.
The billionaire on his first mass call with employees said that he could not rule out bankruptcy, Bloomberg News reported, two weeks after buying it for $44 billion — a deal that credit experts say has left Twitter’s finances in a precarious position.
Earlier in the day, in his first company-wide email, Musk warned that Twitter would not be able to “survive the upcoming economic downturn” if it fails to boost subscription revenue to offset falling advertising income, three people who have seen the message told Reuters.
Yoel Roth, who has overseen Twitter’s response to combat hate speech, misinformation and spam on the service, resigned on Thursday, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters.
In his Twitter profile on Thursday, Roth described himself as “Former Head of Trust & Safety” at the company.
Roth did not respond to requests for comment. Bloomberg and tech site Platformer reported his exit first. Earlier on Thursday, Twitter’s Chief Information Security Officer Lea Kissner tweeted that she had quit.
Chief privacy officer Damien Kieran and chief compliance officer Marianne Fogarty also resigned.
Crypto exchange falls
New York: The cryptocurrency exchange FTX on Friday said that it was filing for bankruptcy, capping a stunning week that has upended crypto markets and sent shock waves through the industry.
In a statement on Twitter, the company said that FTX’s 30-year-old founder, Sam Bankman-Fried, had resigned. John J. Ray III has been appointed chief executive.
FTX collapsed this week after a three-day run on deposits sparked by the chief executive of its top rival, Binance, who posted tweets over the weekend questioning the stability of its business.
The announcement completed a remarkable fall for Bankman-Fried. Just days ago, he was considered one of most powerful figures in the crypto industry.
DAVID YAFFE-BELLANY (NYTNS)
