The Ethereum Foundation (EF) is giving its piggy bank a serious rethink. In a blog post published this week, the nonprofit behind the Ethereum network shared that it plans to take a more calculated approach to spending its reserves.
And no, it’s not because they’re running out of funds, far from it.
The move is part of a broader strategy to make sure EF is ready to step in when the Ethereum ecosystem needs it most, especially during what it describes as upcoming “pivotal” moments over the next 18 months.
A shift in financial planning and DeFi engagement
At the core of this plan is a move toward more deliberate treasury spending. Rather than simply holding large reserves, EF will now deploy capital more strategically to support infrastructure, protocol development, and ecosystem resilience.
The foundation currently holds approximately $970 million in total assets, with nearly $789 million in crypto and the remainder in non-crypto investments.
EF says it will use part of these reserves to participate directly in the DeFi ecosystem. That includes solo staking, lending wETH into on-chain yield platforms, and possibly using real-world asset protocols to seek yield on stablecoins.
The foundation may also borrow stablecoins to access short-term capital, enabling more flexible treasury operations. Employees involved in treasury activities are expected to “upskill” using open-source, privacy-focused tools, consistent with EF’s call to uphold cypherpunk ideals through practical implementation.
New leadership and renewed commitment to Ethereum-native values
The financial strategy update comes amid broader internal changes. In March, the foundation appointed two new co-directors, Hsiao-Wei Wang, a long-time EF researcher, and Tomasz Stanczak, founder of Nethermind, to help steer the organization.
This followed months of criticism from the community, particularly around perceived inaction and the growing momentum of rival ecosystems like Solana.
EF has also revisited its mission language.
While it continues to emphasize trustless applications and decentralization-resistant infrastructure, some long-standing buzzwords such as “permissionless” and “decentralized” have reportedly appeared less frequently in public-facing materials, as noted by Ethereum culture researcher Paul Dylan-Ennis.
The foundation says it will release quarterly and annual financial updates to improve transparency around ETH sales and other treasury activity.
As Ethereum moves deeper into a new development cycle, EF appears to be doubling down on playing a more engaged and adaptive role in guiding its long-term vision, both on-chain and off.
