Ethereum Foundation Co-Executive Director Xiaowei Wang Steps Down as Restructuring Continues
The Ethereum Foundation is undergoing another shake-up at the top. CoinDesk reported that co-executive director Xiaowei Wang has resigned, extending a wave of leadership and staff departures over the past year.
Vitalik Buterin has previously signaled that the foundation is moving toward a leaner model, with tighter priorities centered on censorship resistance, privacy, and security. Wang's exit comes after her return from leave. Her co-lead, Tomasz Stańczak, departed in February, and Bastian Aue was later named interim co-CEO to partner with Wang during the transition. Wang said Aue led the handover while she was away, and she views this as the appropriate moment to step aside.
The report also noted additional losses of key contributors, including prominent researcher Dankrad Feist and at least two other senior members. The ongoing turnover has amplified outside questions about the foundation's ability to keep pushing the Ethereum ecosystem forward.
Buterin has framed the restructuring as a move to a "smaller boat"—a more compact team with clearer objectives. He has said major internal changes have been underway since early 2025 to strengthen ties with ecosystem builders and active participants. Entering 2026, he also acknowledged Ethereum must reassess its relationship with Layer 2 networks, with treasury policy evolving in parallel.
On the financial side, the foundation has recently updated how it manages its treasury. It has long faced community criticism for selling ETH, and has now introduced a more transparent policy that specifies when ETH sales may occur and commits to pursuing acceptable returns on treasury assets. Earlier this year, it also began staking from treasury holdings, aiming to eventually stake about 70,000 ETH, valued at roughly $119 million based on the price cited.
At the time of the report, ETH was down about 1.4% over the past 24 hours, trading near $1,708. At that level, ETH is nearly 66% below its all-time high of $4,946 set in August 2025.
