Ethereum co founder Vitalik Buterin has emphasized that the Ethereum Foundation is transitioning into a smaller and more specialized organization within the wider Ethereum ecosystem.
Addressing increasing scrutiny surrounding the Foundation, Buterin stated that the EF should not be viewed as the central authority of Ethereum. Instead, he described it as just one participant in a much broader decentralized network, operating alongside many others with a clearly defined role.
Ethereum Foundation Moving Toward a More Focused Structure
In a recent post on X, Buterin explained that the Foundation’s board is expanding while his own influence over the organization is gradually decreasing, which he said aligns with his long term vision.
He credited Ethereum Foundation President Aya Miyaguchi with leading much of the ongoing organizational transition, while his personal contributions have remained primarily technical in nature.
According to Buterin, the EF significantly improved its efficiency and operational execution throughout 2025. However, he also acknowledged growing criticism from community members who questioned whether the Foundation’s actions fully reflected Ethereum’s principles of decentralization, privacy, and its vision as a form of “sanctuary technology.”
Buterin stressed that the Foundation should never evolve into a centralized governing body. He pointed out that the EF controls only about 0.16% of Ethereum’s total supply, a figure far lower than several competing blockchain foundations that reportedly hold between 10% and 50% of their native tokens.
He also noted that the Foundation was initially established to oversee specific milestones during Ethereum’s early development stages, including Frontier, Homestead, Metropolis, and Serenity, all of which were completed by 2022.
Focus Shifts Toward Long Term Sustainability
According to Buterin, the Ethereum Foundation is now prioritizing long term sustainability instead of broad expansion.
He said the organization plans to concentrate only on initiatives considered essential to maintaining Ethereum as an open, censorship resistant, secure, and privacy focused network.
This strategy, he explained, involves difficult trade offs, including allowing influential developers and important projects to operate independently outside the Foundation in order to attract external funding and support.
Buterin also argued that Ethereum should avoid competing solely on transaction speed or scalability metrics, warning that such a strategy could ultimately result in “mediocrity.”
Instead, he said Ethereum’s long term priorities should include goals such as building a provably bug free blockchain through AI assisted formal verification, improving consensus mechanisms, and minimizing reliance on intermediaries for transaction inclusion.
At the same time, Buterin emphasized that Ethereum’s broader technical roadmap still supports scalability improvements through Layer 2 networks and other infrastructure optimizations.
He added that the Ethereum Foundation is expected to become a smaller but more opinion driven organization focused on ensuring Ethereum continues delivering meaningful long term value.
Recent Departures Fuel Community Speculation
The Ethereum Foundation has faced increased attention in recent months following several high profile departures, including Tomasz Stanczak, Tim Beiko, Josh Stark, and Barnabé Monnot.
The wave of exits sparked widespread discussion within the Ethereum community, with some observers speculating about possible internal tensions and disagreements over the Foundation’s evolving direction.
However, Ethereum investor Ryan Beckmans argued that the departures were largely connected to leadership transitions, restructuring efforts, and differing strategic perspectives rather than any loss of confidence in Ethereum itself.#crypto#cryptonewshttps://coinsignals.net https://t.me/coinsignalpublic
