This week, we were introduced to another “first” for NFT application – tokenizing a resignation letter and dropping it as an Open Edition. 

When Mastercard’s (now former) NFT Product Lead, Satvik Sethi took to Twitter on Thursday in a series of tweets announcing what he described as a “difficult and drawn-out” resignation process, his decision to drop his resignation letter as an Open Edition NFT is something that we haven’t really seen before in Web3. 

And it begs the question of whether or not this new application of NFTs is a new trend we can expect in the future as a testament to fighting the good fight and preserving mental health – or simply another exploitative application of a nascent technology. 

His resignation letter, titled “New Beginnings,” is available to mint as an Open Edition on Manifold.xyz for 0.023 ETH (approx. $36 USD).

“New Beginnings,” the resignation letter Mastercard’s (now former) NFT Product Lead, Satvik Sethi dropped as an Open Edition NFT on Manifold.xyz.

A few posts to Reddit have described Sethi’s decision to tokenize his resignation letter as a “weird flex” and even a “Spite NFT,” while others expressed their excitement in seeing something “original” that hasn’t been done before and possibly hinting towards a new type of future mechanism for speaking out against alleged work hostility and mental health challenges.

“As Mastercard, I was a victim of harassment and emotional distress caused by a series of mismanaged processes, miscommunication, internal inefficiency,” one of Sethi’s tweets reads. “There were months at a time when I wouldn’t receive my salary until I begged across the hierarchy for it, among many other issues.”

Sethi, who spent over a year leading Mastercard’s NFT Product division, says he initially moved from NYC to London because of visa issues, while having to maintain a workload that he said increased 200%, despite his salary allegedly being cut by 40 percent. 

In his series of tweets, he also explained that when it came to Mastercard’s global partners, clients, and regional teams, any questions or concerns involving Web3 and NFTs would be redirected from the company’s CMO to him. 

“Being an immigrant is difficult and not many people understand that. I’ve been separated from friends, family, & been at the behest of my employer for how to live my life, twice now. I can’t go on like this. My mental health was really struggling, panic attacks, & depression.

Consequently, his decision to quit Mastercard also means that he will lose his work visa in London. “I’ll be based in India for the foreseeable future until something comes along to help me find a way to get immigration on my own terms and merit,” he tweeted.

I have resigned from @Mastercard.

For the past year, I served as the ‘NFT Product Lead.’ I evangelized Web3 for Mastercard leadership & regional teams, as well as all our Fortune 500 clients & partners.

This wasn’t easy but read on for why it was necessary, and what’s next ?: pic.twitter.com/kqiavsSIW7

— Satvik Sethi (@sxtvik) February 2, 2023

Sethi says the next steps for him include spending time working on his own art, while prioritizing the growth and future of his new Web3 social community platform, joincircle. 

“We have 90,000+ sign ups, 35+ partner communities, 300,000+ potential users waiting,” he shared, emphasizing his goal of “doing justice” by all who support him. 

Ultimately, while this is certainly a new way NFTs have been utilized, the question remains as to whether or not there is value in this type of tokenization for both employees and the community at large. 

One argument lends itself to supporting and standing up for those who struggle with mental health challenges in the workplace, while another can be made challenging the purpose and intent behind tokenizing a resignation letter in the way Sethi did, while simultaneously collecting money from the proceeds. 

What is unclear is how Sethi intends to use the proceeds collected from the Open Edition, which he says “100% goes to survival…and isn’t gambling money.”

If you want to support me, you can mint my resignation for 0.023 ETH. A piece of my personal history from the year I leaped. Art airdrop for holders in the future as thanks.

Would appreciate RTs, 100% of this goes to survival. This isn’t gambling money.https://t.co/OqxRD6LHvd

— Satvik Sethi (@sxtvik) February 2, 2023

“Ultimately this is a setback for the time being. It means loss of financial stability, loss of immigration status, loss of some friendships, and I’m expecting more corporate bureaucracy I’ll have to deal with on my way out. None of this is easy [right now], but I didn’t expect it to be.”

In other news, read about Mastercard partnering with Binance to bring crypto Brazil.