Ethereum Foundation President Breaks Silence On New Mandate And Internal Tensions

Ethereum Foundation President Aya Miyaguchi has laid out her view of the group’s new mandate, framing the shift as a essential reset after inside debates grew to become more and more strained and the Foundation confronted strain to be too many issues without delay.

Her feedback, posted on X after Vitalik Buterin shared his personal view of the Foundation’s course, arrive throughout a delicate interval for Ethereum’s core nonprofit. The EF is transferring towards a smaller, extra centered construction whereas the broader ecosystem debates its governance function, technical priorities and a wave of high-profile departures.

Ethereum Foundation Enters New Power Era

Miyaguchi stated the mandate got here from the board, however that she proposed it late final yr. The set off, in her telling, was not a single dispute however a structural downside: EF had turn out to be a focus for competing expectations.

“First, debates that have been meant to be technical had began to turn out to be political and private, and at instances formed by quieter incentives,” she wrote. “Second, as EF grew, increasingly variations of ‘what EF ought to be’ started pulling on the core of the group from each course without delay. I grew to become satisfied that making an attempt to fulfill all of them would go away us attaining nothing in any respect.”

That line goes to the middle of the Foundation’s dilemma. Ethereum has lengthy relied on EF for analysis funding, coordination and stewardship, however its tradition has additionally resisted the concept any single entity ought to turn out to be Ethereum’s command heart. Miyaguchi leaned closely into that rigidity, arguing that EF’s lowered centrality just isn’t a retreat from duty however proof that Ethereum has matured past its first establishment.

“We have stated it many instances: EF is one in every of many nodes in Ethereum,” she wrote. “I do know that’s onerous to listen to for some, as a result of EF was the primary group, and within the early years it was important for making issues occur. But it was by no means meant to remain that means.”

Miyaguchi related that philosophy to her personal historical past in crypto, noting that she has been within the sector since 2012 and joined Kraken in 2013 shortly earlier than the collapse of Mt. Gox, which she stated she helped clear up. That expertise, she argued, formed her understanding of each progress and centralization threat. When she grew to become govt director in 2018, her aim was to assist Ethereum develop past EF.

The Foundation, she stated, made deliberate selections to distribute energy reasonably than retain management. Miyaguchi pointed to EF’s function in incubating and releasing tasks reminiscent of Uniswap and ENS, supporting ETHGlobal and hackathons, and “funding the funders” via teams reminiscent of Gitcoin and Moloch. The guiding query, she stated, was at all times: “how does this stand by itself, with out us?”

That technique, in accordance with Miyaguchi, has left EF with lower than 0.2% of all ETH and a job that’s now narrower by design. The mandate, she stated, is to protect and speed up the properties and objectives that make Ethereum “uniquely precious, aggressive, and price constructing on,” centered on what she known as CROPS and “inalienable person self-sovereignty and self-sovereign coordination.”

“We can not do it alone, and we don’t intend to,” she wrote. “But defining this because the north star for the mission, and coordinating with the allies who share it, is the duty we’re conserving.”

Miyaguchi additionally pushed again in opposition to the concept a sharper EF means much less concern for adoption. She stated the other is true, arguing that on a regular basis customers and establishments each depend upon Ethereum’s underlying worth proposition. Adoption, together with institutional adoption, stays a part of EF’s work, she stated, however solely in ways in which match the mission.

The feedback come as EF has seen a notable exodus of senior and high-profile contributors in 2026, together with researchers and ecosystem figures reminiscent of Carl Beekhuizen, Julian Ma, Barnabé Monnot, Tim Beiko, Trent Van Epps, Josh Stark and former co-executive director Tomasz Stańczak. That turnover has intensified scrutiny over whether or not the Foundation’s restructuring is an indication of wholesome decentralization, inside pressure, or each.

Miyaguchi acknowledged the personnel implications straight. “As EF turns into extra centered and extra opinionated, the group naturally turns into smaller and extra concentrated. That is a part of the selection,” she wrote, including that new leaders are already getting into the mission and that administration will present extra particulars on the brand new construction and technique within the coming weeks.

Buterin’s May 24 post set the stage for Miyaguchi’s remarks. He described the EF as nonetheless being in transition, emphasised that he doesn’t maintain particular energy over the board, and stated one other chief is executing a lot of the present transition. He additionally framed the Foundation’s future as leaner and extra centered, with much less emphasis on being the middle of Ethereum and extra emphasis on preserving the community’s long-term properties.

At press time, ETH traded at $1,986.