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Better.com is preparing for another slew of layoffs

The company has been bleeding senior leadership as it reportedly readies to cut thousands more employees.

Better.com logo with a question mark

Better ... or worse?

Illustration: Christopher T. Fong/Protocol

Better.com is preparing for another round of layoffs, several unnamed people told TechCrunch on Friday. The real estate tech company has reportedly been bleeding senior executives since it let go 900 employees in a 3-minute Zoom call in December.

The current and former employees who spoke to TechCrunch said the latest wave of layoffs are expected to come in March, and could affect as much as 40% to 50% of the staff. Four top executives have resigned since the original round of layoffs: finance VP Clayton Coral, Head of Real Estate Christian Wallace, General Manager of Purchase Paul Tyger, and Head of Sales Stephen Rosen, according to the TechCrunch report as well as posts on LinkedIn and Blind.

On top of the executive-suite turmoil, two board members recently stepped down, and the company delayed a $6.9 billion SPAC deal indefinitely.

Better.com CEO Vishal Garg apologized for his handling of the firings in December, saying he "blundered the execution" in a letter to employees leaked on Blind. Garg also reportedly insulted an investor, calling him "sewage." He took a leave of absence after the layoffs starting Dec. 10, and was reinstated in his position on Jan. 19 by the board of directors, but now faces a fraud suit from investors who allege he misused their funds to invest in startups.

Nat Rubio-Licht

Nat Rubio-Licht is a Los Angeles-based news writer at Protocol. They graduated from Syracuse University with a degree in newspaper and online journalism in May 2020. Prior to joining the team, they worked at the Los Angeles Business Journal as a technology and aerospace reporter.

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