Vitalik Proposes Smaller, More Opinionated Ethereum Foundation

Vitalik Buterin posted a public vision for a smaller, more opinionated Ethereum Foundation, one that he explicitly says reflects his own view rather than the board's, and that frames EF as "one node, with a defined purpose, alongside other nodes." The post lands against a backdrop of at least nine senior EF departures in 2026, ongoing community frustration over EF-linked ETH sales, and a Treasury that holds roughly 0.16% of all ETH — a fraction of the 10% to 50% foundation allocations Buterin says are common at other blockchain projects. Staking has moved roughly 69,500 ETH of that treasury toward yield generation, near a stated 70,000 ETH target, but the resulting $3.9 million to $5.4 million in annual staking income is well below the Foundation's historical operating costs of nearly $100 million per year. Under those numbers, "sell less ETH" stops being a slogan and becomes a spending cut.

Why it matters

The deeper argument runs through the March 13 Ethereum Foundation Mandate, which codified censorship resistance, open source, privacy, and security (CROPS) as Ethereum's core institutional identity and described EF as one of many stewards whose success is measured by reducing EF dependence over time. Buterin's post maps directly onto that framing: EF focuses on what only EF can credibly deliver, some of which he argues is newly achievable through AI-assisted proof systems, while asset promotion, business development, and coordination are handed to outside organizations. Aya Miyaguchi is executing much of the transition, with Buterin's input concentrated on technical work like formal verification, intermediary minimization, and lean consensus. The risk is mechanical. If EF loses institutional knowledge faster than external groups absorb the growth function, decentralization becomes brain drain dressed up as philosophy, and the organizations Buterin is counting on arrive too slowly or undercapitalised to replace what EF built over a decade.

Market impact

ETH holders watching Solana attract institutional capital through a centrally coordinated asset narrative read a smaller EF as a sign of execution weakness, and the dispute is now explicit.