Vitalik Buterin has responded to calls for change within the Ethereum Foundation, rejecting demands for Executive Director Aya Miyaguchi to resign and criticizing pressure campaigns aimed at the organization.
His comments followed tweets from traders and industry players, including CoinMamba, Tetranode and Evan Van Ness, who claimed that Danny Ryan’s appointment as EF leader would address concerns about development priorities and decision making.
Buterin said:
“That’s not how this game works. The person who decides the new management team at EF is me.
According to the EF website, the board of directors has only three members: Vitalik Buterin, Aya Miyaguchi and Patrick Storchenegger.
Buterin warned that orchestrating pressure on social media risks undermining Ethereum’s culture and pushing away contributors. He stressed that any leadership transition would require thoughtful steps rather than public confrontations, saying:
“If you ‘keep the pressure on,’ you are creating an actively toxic environment for top talent. Some of Ethereum’s top developers have recently sent me messages, expressing their disgust at the social media environment that people like you are creating. YOU MAKE MY JOB HARDER.
CoinMamba had suggested that Miyaguchi’s departure could drive up the price of Ethereum, while Tetranode openly threatened prolonged efforts to oust leaders it deemed unfit. Buterin countered that this approach hurts morale and deters high-caliber talent from engaging in the Ethereum ecosystem.
Ethereum Reform
The tension follows recent comments by Buterin outlining a reform of the Ethereum Foundation’s leadership structure. He has focused on improving technical expertise, promoting closer collaboration with ecosystem participants, and recruiting new contributors who align with Ethereum’s open source values. He also stressed that a change in leadership would not transform the Foundation into a centralized or politically directed organization.
Some community members view leadership conflicts as the culmination of broader disagreements over the role of the Foundation. Critics have questioned the group’s transparency, citing past symbolic moveslike when the Foundation transferred $72 million in ETH to Kraken in January 2025.
Others cited delays in the Dencun upgrade, which introduced “transactions carrying blobs” to refine data processing. The staggered rollout has caused friction among some participants, eager to see faster progress.
EF Amendments and For-Profit Requirements
While some want the Foundation to take a more top-down approach, Buterin argued that Ethereum should remain decentralized, with the FE focusing on initiatives it can manage effectively. He noted that for-profit groups could better serve other purposes and opposed the idea that the FE should feel obligated to address all community concerns. Critics like Evan Van Ness acknowledged Buterin’s position but insisted that naming Ryan as Miyaguchi’s successor would calm tensions.
Buterin said the FE would continue its mission while encouraging alternative organizations to take on roles that the Foundation could not easily fill. Buterin’s messages indicate no immediate reversal of leadership plans or personnel changes, although he has reasserted his control over FE governance until a “real board of directors” is put in place. place.
He also highlighted comments from several other X users, calling them “pure evil” because they contained vulgar memes, calls to bully Aya, and discussions to “kill Aya.”
He insisted that fostering a healthy environment for developers remains a priority and urged critics to consider the long-term consequences of public campaigns. He offered no other timetable for structural changes, leaving open the question of when or if the Foundation will change direction.
