Former Ethereum insider sounds alarm on critical funding shortage for core developers
An ex-contributor raises concerns amid the Ethereum Foundation's cost-cutting measures, treasury policy shifts, and multiple high-level executive exits.
Trenton Van Epps, who previously worked as a contributor to the Ethereum Foundation, has issued a warning that the blockchain network is heading toward a critical funding crisis for its core development operations, with the shortage expected to become apparent within the next three to nine months.
In a Thursday blog post, the ex-contributor detailed how the Ethereum Foundation's recent budget cuts combined with the conclusion of the Client Incentive Program scheduled for April have created a situation where the network's essential development infrastructure now needs approximately $30 million in yearly funding to maintain operations.
Drawing from recent discussions with individuals working on core development projects, Epps indicated that Ethereum could be on the verge of experiencing what he described as a "slow-burning funding crisis."
The warning from Van Epps arrives amid a significant exodus of leadership from the Ethereum Foundation, which saw co-executive director Hsiao-Wei Wang reveal on Thursday her decision to resign from her position, pushing the total count of layoffs and departures at the foundation to approximately 19 individuals since the beginning of this year.
The Ethereum Foundation was contacted by Cointelegraph for verification purposes regarding the estimated annual funding requirement of $30 million, but the publication was unable to confirm this figure independently.
Ethereum Foundation shifts treasury policy
During a May 24 post on X, Vitalik Buterin, one of Ethereum's co-founders, addressed the constraints facing the Ethereum Foundation's financial resources, pointing out that the organization possessed merely around 0.16% of the total Ether (ETH) supply, a significantly smaller percentage compared to what foundations governing certain other blockchain platforms hold.
According to Buterin, the Ethereum Foundation was initially established to handle a specific and limited set of responsibilities, which encompassed building the core software for Ethereum and supporting the network's advancement through its primary roadmap objectives, tasks that he indicated were mostly accomplished by the year 2022.
"And so today, the EF is choosing to use its remaining resources to pursue longevity over breadth (yes, this means we sell less ETH)," Buterin wrote.
During the final days of April, the Ethereum Foundation withdrew 17,000 ETH from staking, followed by an additional unstaking of 21,270 ETH (valued at $50 million at that time) in the first week of May, occurring shortly after the foundation had approached nearly 70,000 ETH in staked holdings earlier during the year. Additionally, the foundation executed an over-the-counter transaction on May 1, selling 10,000 ETH to Bitmine, recognized as the largest corporate holder of ETH.
According to blockchain analytics firm Arkham, these unstaking activities could be attributed to the foundation's requirement for capital to continue advancing development efforts on the network.
These transactions represented yet another modification to how the Ethereum Foundation manages its treasury holdings. In a policy statement released in June 2025, the foundation announced its intention to expand staking activities as a mechanism to finance protocol development efforts while simultaneously reducing future sales of ETH, a decision made following community criticism regarding previous asset disposals.