Ethereum Could Face Funding Crisis Within Months, Former Foundation Researcher Says

Highlights:

• Ethereum Foundation insider Trent warns the network faces a looming funding crisis as Foundation support shrinks.
• Core development needs roughly $30 million annually, but there is no clear replacement for the funding programs that have ended.
• Trent calls for new, neutral institutions to fund Ethereum’s development beyond the Foundation’s traditional central role.
  

Ethereum needs new funding systems and stronger institutions as the Ethereum Foundation reduces its central role in the network, according to a June 18, Paragraph article by Trent. 

In the article titled “Succession After Subtraction,” Trent shared his personal view on Ethereum’s next stage. He spent almost five years working at the Ethereum Foundation. During that time, he helped coordinate core development, worked on Protocol Guild funding, and researched Ethereum’s political economy.

Trent argued that Ethereum now faces two connected problems. First, the ecosystem still depends heavily on the Ethereum Foundation’s influence. Second, core development may face a funding gap in the coming months.

Ethereum Could Face a Funding Crisis Within Months

Former Ethereum $ETH Foundation contributor Trent Van Epps warned that Ethereum's core development ecosystem could face a funding crisis within the next 3 to 9 months.

He cited Ethereum Foundation spending cuts and the… pic.twitter.com/uaXtg5L5P5

— BSCN (@BSCNews) June 19, 2026

Ethereum Foundation Still Holds Strong Influence

Trent focused on the Ethereum Foundation’s idea of “Subtraction.” The idea means the Foundation should not keep all power inside one organization. Instead, it should help value and responsibility grow across the wider Ethereum ecosystem. He said this idea helped show that the Foundation does not want to control Ethereum alone. However, he also said the Foundation has not clearly explained what it will stop doing. Because of that, other groups have struggled to fill the gaps.

The article said the Ethereum Foundation still holds major influence. It has the Ethereum name, strong brand trust, a long record of protocol support, and Vitalik Buterin’s continued link with the organization and board. It also controls important public assets such as ethereum.org, the @ethereum handle, Ethereum logos and trademarks, and major events such as Devcon and Devconnect.

Trent also noted that the Foundation historically employed around 25% of active core protocol contributors. It also used its treasury to support many important teams across the ecosystem.

Core Development Funding Becomes Main Concern

Trent said the Foundation has used much of its ETH treasury over the past 10 years to help build the Ethereum ecosystem. Last June, the Foundation announced a treasury plan to reduce spending and protect its remaining funds. The plan aims to move annual spending from 15% toward a 5% baseline by 2030.

He also pointed to the end of the Client Incentive Program in April. That program funded Ethereum client teams through staking for four years. Client teams build and maintain the software that keeps Ethereum running. According to Trent, no clear replacement appears to be coming.

The article warned that Ethereum could enter a slow funding crisis within the next three to nine months. Trent estimated that core development, research, and coordination teams need about $30 million each year. These teams support more than 10 Ethereum clients and help keep the network reliable.

Without steady funding, Ethereum could lose experienced developers and researchers. Trent warned that this could slow work on scaling, quantum computing risks, and regular network maintenance. It could also hurt Ethereum mainnet’s reputation for reliability.

Ethereum Needs a New Support Model

According to Trent, the Ethereum Foundation will not continue as the main guardian of Ethereum in the next 10 years. He also mentioned that Vitalik Buterin believes that the Ethereum Foundation was only supposed to play an initial role in Ethereum and was not supposed to be a permanent guardian of Ethereum. Trent also called for neutral and accountable funding systems, along with stronger support for broad adoption.