CEO Who Fired 900 Workers on Zoom Before Christmas Has Now Been Fired Himself

Vishal Garg once had the power to end hundreds of careers with a single Zoom call. Now, five years after firing 900 Better.com employees shortly before Christmas, the company’s founder has been removed from his own CEO position and is fighting to get back into the office he once controlled.

Garg says he was effectively outmaneuvered by Daniel Lewis, a hedge fund manager who joined Better’s board only about a week before becoming interim CEO. Better has a very different account of the situation, accusing Garg of violating federal securities laws as the bitter dispute over control of the company escalates.

Garg Was Removed From Better Earlier This Month

Garg was removed as CEO of Better on August 3, according to the reference material, with hedge fund manager Daniel Lewis subsequently taking over as interim CEO. The timing has become a major part of Garg’s explanation for what happened, because Lewis had reportedly joined the company’s board only around a week before Garg was pushed out of the top job.

According to Garg, Lewis initially presented himself as someone who supported Better’s strategy and publicly praised the company. Garg now believes those actions helped Lewis gain the confidence of the board before the leadership change took place. The former CEO says he feels he was deliberately misled by someone who ultimately wanted greater control over the business.

“He said he liked the company’s strategy. He praised us on X and used that to get on our board and win our confidences,” Garg told CNN. His comments suggest that he does not view his removal as an ordinary leadership transition or a decision based solely on the company’s financial performance.

Garg has already taken steps to challenge the decision. He sent a letter to Better’s board demanding that he be reinstated and has retained a lawyer, turning what began as a boardroom power struggle into a dispute that could now have serious legal consequences for both sides.

The 2021 Zoom Call Made Garg Famous For All The Wrong Reasons

Garg was already a controversial figure long before his latest battle with Better. In December 2021, the CEO became the subject of international attention after telling around 900 employees during a company-wide Zoom call that they were being fired, with the layoffs coming just weeks before Christmas.

The call was recorded by an employee and quickly spread online, generating widespread criticism over both the scale and timing of the dismissals. Garg told workers that the terminations were effective immediately and argued that the cuts were necessary to prevent the company from suffering a financial disaster.

“This is the second time in my career I’m doing this and I do not want to do this. The last time I did it, I cried,” Garg said during the call. The statement did little to soften the impact of the announcement, which left hundreds of employees facing unemployment during an already difficult period of the year.

Garg later defended the mass layoffs in a blog post, claiming that at least 250 of the terminated workers had been working an average of only two hours a day while reporting eight or more hours on the payroll system. He accused those workers of stealing from the company and its customers, adding another layer of controversy to an incident that had already become a viral corporate story.

Better’s Financial Performance Is At The Center Of The Fight

The latest dispute is closely tied to Better’s financial performance, and the numbers cited by the company paint a much harsher picture than the one Garg has presented publicly. According to the reference material, Better’s sales dropped from $1.5 billion in 2021 to $70 million in 2023, while the company’s board has cited enormous losses and a steep collapse in its stock price.

Forbes reported that Better’s board voted unanimously to remove Garg, citing net losses exceeding $1.5 billion since 2022 and a more than 90% plunge in the company’s stock price. Those figures appear to form a central part of the board’s justification for replacing the founder, although Garg strongly disputes the idea that the business was heading in the wrong direction.

Garg told CNN that Better had tripled its loan volume and was close to profitability. He also said the company was on track to deliver $200 million in sales this year, offering a far more optimistic assessment of the business than the figures cited by the board suggest.

“We’re winning. We’ve tripled loan volume. We’re close to profitability,” Garg said. He compared the company’s position to a football team that had moved the ball all the way down the field and was now close to the five-yard line, arguing that removing him at this stage could derail a recovery already underway.

Garg Says The Board Made A Serious Mistake

Garg has made it clear that he does not believe his removal was justified, particularly given his belief that Better was approaching profitability. He has argued that the company had made significant progress and that shareholders should have allowed him more time to complete the turnaround rather than replacing him during what he considers a critical stage.

The former CEO has also attempted to frame his fight as something larger than his own position. Garg says his focus remains on helping customers save money and achieve home ownership, and he insists that he was willing to step aside when shareholders asked him to take a back seat.

“It’s not about me. I care about delivering savings to people and helping them live the American Dream. So when shareholders said, ‘You need to take a back seat,’ I complied,” Garg said. His argument is that he was prepared to accept a reduced role, but believes the board ultimately went too far by removing him altogether.

Garg has reportedly offered to return as CEO for just $1 a year until Better becomes profitable, after which he says he would leave the position. The offer appears designed to demonstrate that he is willing to put his own financial interests behind the company’s recovery, while also giving shareholders a reason to consider bringing him back.

Garg Believes Lewis Wanted To Become CEO

Much of Garg’s explanation for his removal centers on Daniel Lewis, the hedge fund manager who joined Better’s board shortly before the leadership change. Garg believes Lewis’s public support for the company’s strategy helped him establish credibility with the board before he eventually became interim CEO.

The former CEO has suggested that Lewis may have had ambitions for the top position all along. Garg’s accusation is that Lewis presented himself as a supporter of the business while gaining the trust of the people responsible for determining its leadership, only to emerge as the person replacing him.

“I suspect he always wanted to become CEO. The board made a mistake,” Garg said. The allegation has not been established as fact, but it gives a clear picture of how Garg views the sequence of events that led to his departure.

The dispute has now moved far beyond a personal disagreement between two executives. Better has filed a complaint in the U.S. Southern District of New York, accusing Garg of violating two federal securities laws while attempting to build shareholder support for his return and allegedly making misleading statements to the market.

Better Has Accused Its Former CEO Of Securities Violations

According to the reference material, Better alleges that Garg attempted to cultivate a coalition of shareholders in an effort to regain control of the company. The company also alleges that he flooded the market with misleading statements, claims that form part of the legal complaint filed after his removal.

Those accusations are allegations made by Better and have not been proven by a court. Garg has responded by demanding that the board reinstate him, meaning the dispute could now develop into a prolonged fight involving shareholders, corporate leadership and the legal system.

The company’s position is also supported by the board’s unanimous vote to remove Garg. Forbes reported that directors pointed to more than $1.5 billion in net losses since 2022 and a stock-price decline of more than 90% as reasons for the decision.

Garg, however, continues to argue that the board has misread the company’s position. His claims about increased loan volume and expected sales growth suggest that he believes Better was finally approaching the recovery he had been working toward, making his removal especially difficult for him to accept.

The Numbers Behind The Extraordinary Corporate Battle

Several figures now define the remarkable reversal in Garg’s relationship with Better:

• 900 employees: The approximate number of workers Garg fired during the December 2021 Zoom call.
• $1.5 billion: The net losses Better says it has suffered since 2022.
• More than 90%: The decline in Better’s stock price cited by the company’s board.
• $1 a year: The salary Garg has reportedly offered to accept if he is reinstated until the company becomes profitable.
• $200 million: The sales figure Garg says Better is on track to deliver this year.

Taken together, the figures explain why both sides can tell dramatically different stories about the same company. Garg points toward increased loan volume and an expected improvement in sales, while Better’s board points toward accumulated losses and a collapse in market value as evidence that a leadership change was necessary.

The numbers also explain why the dispute has become so serious so quickly. Garg is not simply asking for a ceremonial return to the company he founded. He is challenging a unanimous board decision while the company itself is accusing him of conduct that it says violated federal securities laws.

The Man Who Fired 900 People Is Now Asking To Be Reinstated

There is an unmistakable irony in how Garg’s story has developed. In 2021, he was the executive sitting behind a screen with the authority to tell around 900 employees that their jobs had ended immediately. Five years later, he is the person on the other side of a corporate decision, asking the board of the company he founded to reverse its judgment.

The circumstances are obviously different, and Garg’s removal followed a board vote involving serious financial concerns. Yet the reversal remains striking because of the public image created by the 2021 layoffs. The CEO who became famous for delivering an abrupt employment decision through Zoom is now locked in a fight over his own employment status.

Garg’s next move will depend on whether the Better board changes its position or whether the legal baVishal Garg once had the power to end hundreds of careers with a single Zoom call. Now, five years after firing 900 Better.com employees shortly before Christmas, the company’s founder has been removed from his own CEO position and is fighting to get back into the office he once controlled.

Garg says he was effectively outmaneuvered by Daniel Lewis, a hedge fund manager who joined Better’s board only about a week before becoming interim CEO. Better has a very different account of the situation, accusing Garg of violating federal securities laws as the bitter dispute over control of the company escalates.

Garg Was Removed From Better Earlier This Month

Garg was removed as CEO of Better on August 3, according to the reference material, with hedge fund manager Daniel Lewis subsequently taking over as interim CEO. The timing has become a major part of Garg’s explanation for what happened, because Lewis had reportedly joined the company’s board only around a week before Garg was pushed out of the top job.

According to Garg, Lewis initially presented himself as someone who supported Better’s strategy and publicly praised the company. Garg now believes those actions helped Lewis gain the confidence of the board before the leadership change took place. The former CEO says he feels he was deliberately misled by someone who ultimately wanted greater control over the business.

“He said he liked the company’s strategy. He praised us on X and used that to get on our board and win our confidences,” Garg told CNN. His comments suggest that he does not view his removal as an ordinary leadership transition or a decision based solely on the company’s financial performance.

Garg has already taken steps to challenge the decision. He sent a letter to Better’s board demanding that he be reinstated and has retained a lawyer, turning what began as a boardroom power struggle into a dispute that could now have serious legal consequences for both sides.

The 2021 Zoom Call Made Garg Famous For All The Wrong Reasons

Garg was already a controversial figure long before his latest battle with Better. In December 2021, the CEO became the subject of international attention after telling around 900 employees during a company-wide Zoom call that they were being fired, with the layoffs coming just weeks before Christmas.

The call was recorded by an employee and quickly spread online, generating widespread criticism over both the scale and timing of the dismissals. Garg told workers that the terminations were effective immediately and argued that the cuts were necessary to prevent the company from suffering a financial disaster.

“This is the second time in my career I’m doing this and I do not want to do this. The last time I did it, I cried,” Garg said during the call. The statement did little to soften the impact of the announcement, which left hundreds of employees facing unemployment during an already difficult period of the year.

Garg later defended the mass layoffs in a blog post, claiming that at least 250 of the terminated workers had been working an average of only two hours a day while reporting eight or more hours on the payroll system. He accused those workers of stealing from the company and its customers, adding another layer of controversy to an incident that had already become a viral corporate story.

Better’s Financial Performance Is At The Center Of The Fight

The latest dispute is closely tied to Better’s financial performance, and the numbers cited by the company paint a much harsher picture than the one Garg has presented publicly. According to the reference material, Better’s sales dropped from $1.5 billion in 2021 to $70 million in 2023, while the company’s board has cited enormous losses and a steep collapse in its stock price.

Forbes reported that Better’s board voted unanimously to remove Garg, citing net losses exceeding $1.5 billion since 2022 and a more than 90% plunge in the company’s stock price. Those figures appear to form a central part of the board’s justification for replacing the founder, although Garg strongly disputes the idea that the business was heading in the wrong direction.

Garg told CNN that Better had tripled its loan volume and was close to profitability. He also said the company was on track to deliver $200 million in sales this year, offering a far more optimistic assessment of the business than the figures cited by the board suggest.

“We’re winning. We’ve tripled loan volume. We’re close to profitability,” Garg said. He compared the company’s position to a football team that had moved the ball all the way down the field and was now close to the five-yard line, arguing that removing him at this stage could derail a recovery already underway.

Garg Says The Board Made A Serious Mistake

Garg has made it clear that he does not believe his removal was justified, particularly given his belief that Better was approaching profitability. He has argued that the company had made significant progress and that shareholders should have allowed him more time to complete the turnaround rather than replacing him during what he considers a critical stage.

The former CEO has also attempted to frame his fight as something larger than his own position. Garg says his focus remains on helping customers save money and achieve home ownership, and he insists that he was willing to step aside when shareholders asked him to take a back seat.

“It’s not about me. I care about delivering savings to people and helping them live the American Dream. So when shareholders said, ‘You need to take a back seat,’ I complied,” Garg said. His argument is that he was prepared to accept a reduced role, but believes the board ultimately went too far by removing him altogether.

Garg has reportedly offered to return as CEO for just $1 a year until Better becomes profitable, after which he says he would leave the position. The offer appears designed to demonstrate that he is willing to put his own financial interests behind the company’s recovery, while also giving shareholders a reason to consider bringing him back.

Garg Believes Lewis Wanted To Become CEO

Much of Garg’s explanation for his removal centers on Daniel Lewis, the hedge fund manager who joined Better’s board shortly before the leadership change. Garg believes Lewis’s public support for the company’s strategy helped him establish credibility with the board before he eventually became interim CEO.

The former CEO has suggested that Lewis may have had ambitions for the top position all along. Garg’s accusation is that Lewis presented himself as a supporter of the business while gaining the trust of the people responsible for determining its leadership, only to emerge as the person replacing him.

“I suspect he always wanted to become CEO. The board made a mistake,” Garg said. The allegation has not been established as fact, but it gives a clear picture of how Garg views the sequence of events that led to his departure.

The dispute has now moved far beyond a personal disagreement between two executives. Better has filed a complaint in the U.S. Southern District of New York, accusing Garg of violating two federal securities laws while attempting to build shareholder support for his return and allegedly making misleading statements to the market.

Better Has Accused Its Former CEO Of Securities Violations

According to the reference material, Better alleges that Garg attempted to cultivate a coalition of shareholders in an effort to regain control of the company. The company also alleges that he flooded the market with misleading statements, claims that form part of the legal complaint filed after his removal.

Those accusations are allegations made by Better and have not been proven by a court. Garg has responded by demanding that the board reinstate him, meaning the dispute could now develop into a prolonged fight involving shareholders, corporate leadership and the legal system.

The company’s position is also supported by the board’s unanimous vote to remove Garg. Forbes reported that directors pointed to more than $1.5 billion in net losses since 2022 and a stock-price decline of more than 90% as reasons for the decision.

Garg, however, continues to argue that the board has misread the company’s position. His claims about increased loan volume and expected sales growth suggest that he believes Better was finally approaching the recovery he had been working toward, making his removal especially difficult for him to accept.

The Numbers Behind The Extraordinary Corporate Battle

Several figures now define the remarkable reversal in Garg’s relationship with Better:

• 900 employees: The approximate number of workers Garg fired during the December 2021 Zoom call.
• $1.5 billion: The net losses Better says it has suffered since 2022.
• More than 90%: The decline in Better’s stock price cited by the company’s board.
• $1 a year: The salary Garg has reportedly offered to accept if he is reinstated until the company becomes profitable.
• $200 million: The sales figure Garg says Better is on track to deliver this year.

Taken together, the figures explain why both sides can tell dramatically different stories about the same company. Garg points toward increased loan volume and an expected improvement in sales, while Better’s board points toward accumulated losses and a collapse in market value as evidence that a leadership change was necessary.

The numbers also explain why the dispute has become so serious so quickly. Garg is not simply asking for a ceremonial return to the company he founded. He is challenging a unanimous board decision while the company itself is accusing him of conduct that it says violated federal securities laws.

The Man Who Fired 900 People Is Now Asking To Be Reinstated

There is an unmistakable irony in how Garg’s story has developed. In 2021, he was the executive sitting behind a screen with the authority to tell around 900 employees that their jobs had ended immediately. Five years later, he is the person on the other side of a corporate decision, asking the board of the company he founded to reverse its judgment.

The circumstances are obviously different, and Garg’s removal followed a board vote involving serious financial concerns. Yet the reversal remains striking because of the public image created by the 2021 layoffs. The CEO who became famous for delivering an abrupt employment decision through Zoom is now locked in a fight over his own employment status.

Garg’s next move will depend on whether the Better board changes its position or whether the legal battle becomes the route through which he attempts to regain influence. Daniel Lewis remains interim CEO for now, while Better continues to defend the decision to remove its founder.

Five years ago, Garg controlled the Zoom call. Today, he is the one waiting for the people on the other side of the screen to decide whether he gets another chance.ttle becomes the route through which he attempts to regain influence. Daniel Lewis remains interim CEO for now, while Better continues to defend the decision to remove its founder.

Five years ago, Garg controlled the Zoom call. Today, he is the one waiting for the people on the other side of the screen to decide whether he gets another chance.