News linked to both this project and an event.
: The Ethereum Foundation has announced that Pascal Caversaccio, also known as pcaversaccio (or "pc"), has joined its Board of Directors, increasing the board's membership to four.Caversaccio is a co-founder of the Ethereum security organization SEAL 911 and a well-known security expert and privacy advocate within the crypto ecosystem. He has gained attention for his technical security capabilities, as well as his commentary on cypherpunk culture, privacy, and decentralization, and is the author of the "Ethereum Cypherpunk Manifesto".Aya Miyaguchi, Chair of the Ethereum Foundation, stated that Caversaccio brings not only security and privacy expertise but also practical experience highly aligned with Ethereum's core values. She expressed anticipation for the new perspective he will bring to the foundation, pushing it to think more deeply about security and privacy issues.Currently, the Ethereum Foundation Board of Directors includes Aya Miyaguchi, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, Swiss legal representative Patrick Storchenegger, and the newly added Caversaccio. The foundation stated that the board acts like a "security committee," responsible for protecting the foundation's core mission and ensuring its compliance as a Swiss foundation.This appointment is also part of recent adjustments within the Ethereum ecosystem's governance. As the foundation has faced discussions regarding organizational changes, governance transparency, and roadmap coordination in recent years, the inclusion of a figure focused on security and privacy on the board may further strengthen Ethereum's cypherpunk positioning and long-term value narrative.
EthSystems announces its official establishment. The company was founded by the original team of the Ethereum Foundation's "Institutional Privacy Working Group" and has received support from Bitmine, Sharplink, Joe Lubin, and others. It primarily develops Ethereum-based privacy and compliance technology for regulated entities such as banks and asset management institutions, aiming to support institutions in conducting on-chain financial activities without disclosing sensitive information such as transaction details and client identities.
EthSystems, an institutional privacy technology company for Ethereum, has officially launched, securing strategic funding from ecosystem supporters including Bitmine, Sharplink Gaming, and Joe Lubin.EthSystems focuses on developing privacy technologies tailored for banks, asset management firms, and other regulated institutions, enabling them to execute financial transactions at scale on the Ethereum network while protecting sensitive information such as transaction details and client identities. The company was founded by the core team of the Ethereum Foundation's Institutional Privacy Task Force (IPTF). The team had previously conducted a year-long open-source research and development effort on the EthSystems official website and established collaborations with multiple central banks, regulatory bodies, large banks, and asset management institutions.EthSystems stated that while institutions have begun exploring stablecoins, tokenized assets, and Ethereum-based settlement solutions, widespread adoption still faces privacy and compliance challenges. Financial institutions require more than just access to the blockchain network; they need a complete infrastructure that meets the requirements for protecting trade secrets, complying with regulations, and ensuring compatibility with existing financial systems. The goal is to build a "selective disclosure" privacy architecture, allowing transaction participants to view only the information they are authorized to access, while preserving Ethereum's core advantages of decentralization, security, and openness, and complementing two other organizations:Ethlabs: Focused on core Ethereum protocol and infrastructure research and development;Ethereum Institutional: Responsible for institutional collaboration, education, market research, and ecosystem coordination;EthSystems: Concentrated on application-layer technology, translating institutional needs into operational privacy protocols and financial systems.
The Ethereum Foundation's Global Policy Strategy (GPS) team has released the guide "Ethereum Basics for Governments and Institutions," aiming to help policymakers and institutional decision-makers understand Ethereum's operating mechanisms, governance models, and differences from other blockchain solutions. The guide emphasizes that relying on centralized systems brings systemic risks, while decentralized blockchains have the potential to mitigate such risks. Not all blockchains possess the attribute of "credible neutrality," and differences in technical architecture and governance models among blockchains will directly affect whether they can serve as public infrastructure in the long term. Ethereum holds advantages in areas such as resilience, economic security, client diversity, and ecosystem. It has operated continuously without interruption since launching in 2015, with economic security provided by approximately $76 billion in staked ETH, whereas most other Layer 1 networks rely on a single client, presenting higher systemic risks. The Ethereum Foundation stated that building applications on Ethereum does not introduce new centralized counterparty risks, as no single institution can modify rules, restrict access, or halt network operations. In comparison, control over some other Layer 1 networks is concentrated in foundations or corporate entities, which may bring governance and dependency risks.
US President Trump signed two executive orders on Monday aimed at accelerating the nation's quantum computing capabilities and advancing the migration of government systems to post-quantum cryptography. While the orders do not directly mention Bitcoin, industry insiders believe this could benefit blockchain post-quantum security research and development.The two executive orders focus on defending against advanced cryptographic attacks and driving the frontier of quantum innovation. This includes a clear timeline: advancing quantum sensor construction by September 2028, and requiring federal high-value assets and high-impact systems to complete their post-quantum cryptography migration by the end of 2031.Alex Pruden, CEO of Project Eleven, stated that this means the US government will allocate funds and time to achieve post-quantum security goals. It may also extend these requirements to the entire federal contractor system, not just government agencies, thereby accelerating the practical application of post-quantum cryptographic technology.This policy comes amid growing attention within the blockchain industry to quantum threats. The Ethereum Foundation, Solana Foundation, and others have already begun advancing post-quantum security R&D, while the Bitcoin community is also discussing potential risks. Some Bitcoin held in publicly exposed addresses is considered vulnerable to private key derivation attacks once sufficiently powerful quantum computers emerge.Pruden noted that this executive order sets a clear deadline of 2031 for the adoption of post-quantum cryptography, which is more enforceable than the previous US government guidance which only proposed phasing out traditional cryptographic systems by 2035. For Bitcoin and the broader crypto industry, government-level investment in post-quantum security could accelerate the maturation of related tools, standards, and migration pathways.
The Ethereum Foundation (EF) officially announced on June 23 the completion of an internal reorganization that had been underway for several months, aimed at implementing its mission statement and financial management policies. As a result of the reorganization, EF laid off 54 employees—approximately 20% of its total workforce. The Foundation stated that departing employees will continue contributing to the Ethereum ecosystem in other capacities over the coming weeks.
According to a post by Hsiao-Wei Wang (@hwwonx), she has officially stepped down from her roles as Co-Executive Director and Board Member of the Ethereum Foundation, effective immediately. She stated that after careful consideration during her leave of absence, she believes stepping away at this time is the right decision, and she plans to devote more time to her family life going forward. She expressed pride in the Ethereum community’s achievements in building open, censorship-resistant infrastructure and emphasized that she will continue contributing as a member of the community.
A cryptography expert advisory committee led by Coinbase released a report stating that Bitcoin should immediately begin preparing for potential quantum computing attacks. However, the committee did not take a clear stance on whether to freeze the millions of bitcoins potentially vulnerable to quantum-computing theft in the future. The committee includes several leading experts, such as Justin Drake, a researcher at the Ethereum Foundation. They argue that the current debate is not about *how* to introduce quantum-resistant signature schemes, but rather *how to handle* bitcoins held in long-dormant addresses that fail to migrate. One camp advocates setting a final deadline after which Bitcoin’s existing ECDSA and Schnorr signature schemes would no longer be supported, and unmigrated funds would be frozen—thereby preventing future quantum attackers from seizing large amounts of BTC and destabilizing markets. The other camp contends that freezing funds would effectively amount to asset confiscation, violating Bitcoin’s core principles of immutability and full user control over assets—and could set a precedent for future regulatory-driven freezes. The Coinbase advisory committee notes that these approaches are not mutually exclusive and could be combined. Yet it declines to state a position on whether “legacy BTC” should be frozen, asserting that the ultimate decision rests with Bitcoin’s community governance. It emphasizes two key points: first, technical development of quantum-resistant signature migration must begin immediately—not wait for governance debates to conclude; second, users must receive clear, timely risk communication to prevent prolonged uncertainty from harming the Bitcoin ecosystem.
Vitalik Buterin stated that the Ethereum Foundation (EF) is not the “center of Ethereum,” but rather “a node within the ecosystem,” and is currently transitioning toward a smaller, more opinionated, and more sustainability-focused organizational structure. He explained that the Foundation will prioritize allocating its limited resources to work essential for Ethereum’s viability as a censorship-resistant, control-resistant, open, private, and secure system—work that would be unlikely to happen without the Foundation’s involvement—while also reducing ETH sales. Vitalik further noted that Ethereum should not pursue only maximum throughput and low latency, but should instead aim to be “impressive” in areas such as formal verification, chain availability consensus, and reducing reliance on intermediaries. He emphasized that the Foundation’s new structure is expected to gradually stabilize over the coming months.
According to The Block, the Ethereum Foundation has recently experienced another wave of talent attrition: researchers Carl Beek and Julian Ma announced their departures this Monday. Beek had worked at the Foundation for seven years and led the development of Ethereum’s Beacon Chain, making significant contributions to Ethereum’s transition to the Proof-of-Stake (PoS) consensus mechanism; Ma had been with the Foundation for approximately four years, contributing to mechanism design, cryptoeconomics, and protocol scalability, and co-authored EIP-7805—a proposal aimed at enhancing Ethereum’s censorship resistance. Earlier this year, in February, Co-Executive Director Tomasz K. Stańczak resigned; multiple other senior figures—including Josh Stark, Barnabé Monnot, and Tim Beiko—have also departed in succession.
According to The Block, the Ethereum Foundation is restructuring its Protocol team, appointing Will Corcoran, Kev Wedderburn, and Fredrik as the new co-leads of the Protocol cluster. This reorganization comes as Barnabé Monnot and Tim Beiko plan to depart the organization, and Alex Stokes begins a sabbatical. The Protocol team is the Ethereum Foundation’s core team responsible for the design, research, development, and coordination of Ethereum’s base layer, covering areas such as security, cryptography, zkEVM, and peer-to-peer networking. The team is currently advancing Ethereum’s next major scalability upgrade, Glamsterdam, which aims to raise the gas limit ceiling and floor to 200 million and introduce ePBS. Subsequently, the team will shift its R&D focus toward the Hegotá upgrade and the FOCIL prototype to enhance Ethereum’s censorship resistance.
the Ethereum Protocol Support Team has announced the launch of Ethereum Protocol Fellowship Cohort 7 (EPF7). The application channel is now open, with a deadline of May 13th.This program is designed to cultivate engineers capable of participating in Ethereum core protocol development, focusing on the network's core attributes including censorship resistance, open-source nature, privacy, and security. Key areas of focus include client implementations, protocol specifications, testing, and cutting-edge research.EPF7 will adopt a "small-scale, high-density" model, reducing participant numbers to enhance the depth of mentorship and the quality of project contributions, while strengthening collaboration opportunities with the core development team. The project runs from June to November. Selected participants will receive mentorship support from the Ethereum core developer community. Some participants will also receive monthly grants to focus on protocol development work. The program goals include nurturing long-term contributors for the Ethereum core research and development team, and driving participants towards producing substantive results in client development and protocol research.It is reported that the EPF team will host an online information session on May 6th at 15:00 UTC to further introduce project details and answer application-related questions.
According to the Ethereum Foundation’s official website, its Ecosystem Support Program (ESP) allocated a total of $9.856 million in Q1 2026, with funding concentrated on core infrastructure areas including cryptography, zero-knowledge proofs, security audits, and protocol research. Key funded projects this quarter include: - In the ZK domain: formal verification of zkVMs, GPU-accelerated R1CS witness generation, and intermediate representation optimization for LLZK; - In security: cryptanalysis of Poseidon, cross-platform canonical signing libraries for ERC-7730, and specification-compliance testing for ePBS; - In node and client development: Erigon zkEVM extensions, Besu HSM compliance integration, and the multi-node validator Vero; - Additionally, privacy tools (Kohaku SDK, Tor bridge extensions), continued operations of the Layer 2 transparency platform L2BEAT, and R&D for the Lighthouse client’s transition to the Fusaka fork. On ecosystem development, ESP simultaneously supported Ethereum developer events in Seoul, Hong Kong, Vancouver, and Buenos Aires, advanced updates to the Ethereum climate impact assessment, and backed policy research initiatives by the European Decentralization Institute (EDI).