In summary
- The Ethereum Foundation's co-director is resigning from her role.
- This marks an ongoing trend of significant turnover within the Ethereum organization.
- Earlier this year, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin indicated a shift towards a more streamlined Foundation.
Hsiao-Wei Wang has announced her immediate departure from her position as co-director at the Ethereum Foundation, as stated in a social media update, adding to the list of notable exits from Ethereum's leadership.
Wang's resignation follows her recent sabbatical and the earlier exit of her co-director, Tomasz Stańczak, who left in February. After Stańczak's departure, Bastian Aue took on the role of interim co-director alongside Wang.
“During my time away, Bastian managed the transition thoughtfully, and I appreciate the efforts he and others put into it,” Wang remarked. “I've realized that now is the right time for me to step aside.”
Her exit comes just a month after Vitalik Buterin suggested that the Foundation would be moving towards a “smaller ship,” emphasizing the need for a more focused team dedicated to issues like censorship resistance, privacy, and security.
Prior to Buterin’s comments, the Foundation had already experienced several significant departures, including top researcher Dankrad Feist, Stańczak, and at least two long-standing members of the organization.
The leadership changes have raised doubts about the Foundation's capability to advance the Ethereum ecosystem.
Feist expressed these concerns shortly before Buterin's announcement in May, advocating for the establishment of a new organization with at least $1 billion in ETH funding to “save Ethereum.”
“The community must form an organization that is economically aligned with Ethereum and accountable to it,” he stated on X, insisting on the need for “a leader who is capable and willing to fight.”
For years, the organization has grappled with tension and uncertainty, with Buterin indicating that the Foundation has been undergoing major changes since early 2025, aiming to strengthen its relationships with ecosystem builders and active participants. Efforts for significant change continued into 2026, when he acknowledged the need for “new plans” regarding its relationship with layer-2 networks.
Historically criticized for its Ethereum sales, the EF has recently adopted a more transparent treasury policy that outlines when it will consider selling ETH, with a goal to “generate acceptable returns on treasury assets.” Earlier this year, it began staking its treasury, aiming to stake approximately 70,000 ETH, valued at around $119 million based on current ETH prices.
Currently, ETH, the Foundation's primary asset, has decreased by about 1.4% over the past 24 hours, trading at $1,708. At this price, it has fallen nearly 66% from its peak of $4,946 reached in August 2025.
A spokesperson for the Ethereum Foundation has not yet responded to a request for comment from Decrypt.