Ethereum Foundation Departures Spark Debate Over Leadership and ETH Price Focus
Multiple senior Ethereum Foundation staff have departed in 2026, with four prominent exits in April and May and the co-Executive Director stepping down after 11 months. Community figures disagree on the cause, and calls are growing for a new organization focused on ETH price.
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Scale and Timing of the Exits
At least eight senior Ethereum Foundation (EF) researchers and leaders have announced departures this year, according to The Defiant. CryptoPotato's list of departing contributors includes Carl Beek, Julian Ma, Barnabe Monnot, Tim Beiko, Trent Van Epps, Josh Stark and former co-Executive Director Tomasz Stanczak. The two outlets' counts differ, and the difference likely reflects which departures each one included.
The departures are concentrated in time. CryptoPotato reports that four of the more prominent exits landed within roughly four weeks of each other in April and May. Stanczak's exit drew particular attention because it came 11 months after he took the co-Executive Director role.
Competing Explanations
Ryan Berckmans, an Ethereum community figure who has worked full-time in the space for eight years, argues the exits do not reflect doubt about Ethereum's direction. In a post quoted by CryptoPotato, he attributes them to internal disagreements over sub-strategies, a small number of people asked to leave, some personal decisions and a deliberate generational handover to younger contributors. He also argues the EF and Vitalik Buterin care about ETH's long-run position, including questions about dominance after quantum computing, even if they are not tracking short-term price.
The Defiant's coverage frames the exits differently, as a fuel source for calls to create a new Ethereum organization focused on price. The Defiant's piece is presented in its headline and summary as a reaction to the exits rather than as a documented cause, so the two outlets should be read as reporting on different aspects of the same events.
The explanations also differ on whether a new mandate played a role. CryptoPotato cites researcher Nick Sawinyh's analysis of unconfirmed online claims that staff were asked to formally align with the Foundation's new mandate. The EF has not publicly confirmed those claims, and none of the departing contributors cited the mandate as their reason for leaving, according to the same report.
Upgrade Timeline and Institutional Role
The departures have drawn attention to Glamsterdam, a protocol upgrade still in testing that includes changes to scaling and validator infrastructure. CryptoPotato reports that some anticipated features, including FOCIL and native account abstraction, have been pushed to a later upgrade cycle.
Some backers read the Foundation's shrinking role as intentional. Author William Mougayar, quoted by CryptoPotato, described it as an effort to remove Ethereum's remaining central point of control rather than a sign of institutional decline. That view is not shared by all observers, and the reporting available here does not establish which account of the EF's direction will prove correct.
Why It Matters
For Traders
Leadership turnover and an unconfirmed push for a price-focused body could add headline volatility around Glamsterdam testing news, but neither source ties the exits to a concrete change in ETH supply or protocol economics.
For Investors
Sustained senior turnover at the EF, alongside delayed features, is a structural question about how Ethereum's core development will be governed over the next several years.
For Builders
Delays to FOCIL and native account abstraction in Glamsterdam change the timelines builders should plan around for wallet and account design.
This article is for information only and is not financial advice. Read the full disclaimer.
