Following the announcement of co-executive director Hsiao-Wei Wang's resignation, the Ethereum community is revisiting discussions about the foundation's future.
By Margaux Nijkerk|Edited by Cheyenne Ligon Jun 22, 2026, 4:39 p.m. 3 min readMake preferred on ShareShare this articleCopy linkX (Twitter)LinkedInFacebookEmailMake preferred on SummaryShow- Co-executive director Hsiao-Wei Wang's resignation has intensified scrutiny of the Ethereum Foundation, which has seen at least eight senior staff departures in the last five months, raising questions about its leadership and direction.
- Opinions within the community are split; some see the departures as indicative of management issues, while others view them as a step toward decentralizing control beyond the Foundation.
The Ethereum Foundation (EF) is facing renewed scrutiny following co-executive director Hsiao-Wei Wang's announcement of her resignation, marking a significant moment in the ongoing conversation about the foundation's future and management. This resignation is part of a troubling trend, as eight senior figures have left the Foundation in the past five months, prompting fresh discussions about its governance and effectiveness.
Wang, who has been a key figure in Ethereum's research community, stated that she intends to return to a research-centric role. Her exit coincides with a period of considerable transformation within the Switzerland-based nonprofit, which coordinates Ethereum's research, development, and ecosystem initiatives.
In addition to Wang, at least eight other senior members have departed recently, intensifying concerns about the Foundation’s internal governance and whether it can effectively navigate the increasingly competitive blockchain environment.
This exodus of talent comes as the Foundation has also introduced a new strategic framework titled "CROPS," which stands for cypherpunk values, resilience, open-source development, permissionlessness, and security. The Foundation's leadership has promoted this framework as a way to clarify its mission and bolster Ethereum's core values amid growing decentralization. While some supporters view it as a reaffirmation of Ethereum's foundational principles, critics argue it fails to address key concerns regarding operational effectiveness and the network's competitive standing.
Former Ethereum researcher Dankrad Feist has been particularly vocal, suggesting that the wave of resignations indicates deeper management issues, rather than mere disagreements over strategy. "The individuals departing the Ethereum Foundation are supporters of the CROPS values," Feist remarked on X. "The issue lies not in the strategy but in management."
Feist's remarks are significant as they challenge the prevailing narrative that the recent departures are due to dissatisfaction with the Foundation's new strategic direction. He contends that many who have left actually endorse the CROPS vision, suggesting that the talent loss points to deficiencies in leadership instead of ideological disputes. "The talent exodus is genuinely bearish for Ethereum, unfortunately," he concluded.
Others in the community have expressed similar concerns regarding the Foundation's internal culture. Yuga Cohler, Coinbase’s head of engineering, shared on X, "It saddens me to observe the dysfunction within the Ethereum Foundation."
This latest wave of discussions emerges as Ethereum contends with increasing competition from other blockchains and ongoing criticism from community members who feel the network has struggled to leverage its technological advantages into better market performance. Despite Ethereum's status as a leading smart-contract platform by various metrics, doubts about the Foundation’s role and effectiveness have become a recurring concern during recent market downturns.
DCinvestor, a notable member of the Ethereum community, suggested that separating the EF's research and development roles from its ecosystem development activities could lead to better outcomes, proposing that they be managed through a structure akin to an industry consortium. He stated, "Having these functions together has led to multiple instances of conflicts of interest and less than optimal progress in protocol development aligned with market needs," he noted on X.
While he acknowledged the concerns stemming from the recent departures, he remained optimistic about Ethereum's resilience, asserting, "Real issues need long-term solutions. However, the decentralized protocol is fundamentally sound."
Not all community members view Wang's resignation as a crisis; some interpret it as a step toward a more evolved governance model for Ethereum, where authority is increasingly distributed among developers, decentralized autonomous organizations, and independent entities. "This is precisely why the Ethereum Foundation's transition is significant," commented community member BMNR Bullz on X. "The EF is becoming smaller and more focused, while funding and stewardship are shifting to the broader ecosystem."
The varied responses highlight an ongoing debate within Ethereum: whether these recent departures signify a troubling loss of institutional knowledge and trust in the Foundation's leadership, or if they represent a necessary progression toward decentralizing authority beyond a single entity. For the time being, Wang's departure serves as a critical point in this discussion, and it seems likely that the conversation will continue as Ethereum's institutions evolve.
Read more: Ethereum Foundation loses another key leader as co-executive director Hsiao-Wei Wang resigns
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