Another key figure at the Department of Government Efficiency, nicknamed “Big Balls”, has reportedly stepped down, following the exit of Elon Musk from the federal initiative meant to reduce wasteful spending.

What Happened: Edward Coristine, a 19-year-old high school graduate operating under the pseudonym “Big Balls”, has resigned from his role at DOGE, The Hill reported Tuesday, citing a White House official with knowledge of the matter.

Coristine was a key participant in high-level meetings involving the DOGE, Treasury Department, Commerce Department, and military operations during his tenure, the report said.

Despite his age and education, Coristine gained access to the United States’ payroll systems. However, his Google Workspace account with the General Services Administration (GSA) is no longer active following his resignation, as reported by WIRED.

DOGE didn’t immediately return Benzinga’s request to confirm this news.

See Also: Peter Schiff Slams Texas For Authorizing Bitcoin Reserve: ‘Another Example Of Why The Founding Fathers Distrusted Democracy’

Why It Matters: Coristine, previously lauded by Musk, was reportedly linked to a cybercrime group, leading to concerns about the integrity of the DOGE initiative. His former company, DiamondCDN, had ties to a website operated by the cybercrime group “EGodly”.

Coristine’s departure follows a series of high-profile exits from DOGE, including that of Musk himself and his long-time lieutenant Steve Davis. Davis played a central role in executing Musk’s cost-cutting vision, overseeing staffing decisions and guiding a team of engineers embedded in federal agencies.

DOGE, Musk’s brainchild, aimed to modernize government operations to increase efficiency and cost-effectiveness, although it isn’t an official government department. During his tenure, DOGE claimed $160 billion in government savings through contract terminations and IT modernization efforts.

At the same time, the initiative faced flak for seeking access to sensitive government systems such as the Treasury Department and potential conflicts of interest.

Price Action:  The DOGE acronym also alludes to Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE), a meme coin that Musk has liked over the years, although there is no direct link between the department and the cryptocurrency.

At the time of writing, DOGE was exchanging hands at $0.1657, up 1.07% in the last 24 hours, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

Photo Courtesy: iQoncept on Shutterstock.com

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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.