On October 20, 2025, Vitalik Buterin, Ethereum’s co-founder, addressed mounting concerns about centralization and “inner circle” control within the Ethereum Foundation (EF), emphasizing transparency in ongoing structural changes, per Cryptocurrency Press. In a public statement on X, Buterin confirmed a year-long overhaul of EF’s leadership to enhance technical expertise and communication, stating, “We are indeed currently in the process of large changes to EF leadership structure, which has been ongoing for close to a year.” This comes amid criticism from Ethereum core developer Péter Szilágyi, who accused the EF of “non-decentralized governance” and Buterin’s outsized influence, per CryptoBriefing. X posts from @LosKruptos amplified the discussion, linking to reports on Buterin’s response to “excessive control” allegations.
Buterin and EF’s Hsiao-Wei Wang clarified that a recent $13M ETH sale was unrelated to the Foundation, dispelling rumors of internal maneuvering. The EF’s treasury now holds less than 0.3% of ETH supply, underscoring a deliberate reduction in centralized control to mitigate risks. This aligns with Buterin’s long-standing warnings on staking centralization, where large pools like Lido dominate 30% of staked ETH, potentially enabling 51% attacks or censorship, per ZyCrypto. Technical indicators show ETH’s RSI at 65.16, signaling bullish momentum but cautioning overbought risks near $4,700 resistance, per CoinGlass. The Ethereum market cap stands at $567B, with $19.3B daily volume, per CoinMarketCap.
The controversy highlights Ethereum’s governance challenges, with Szilágyi warning of “protocol capture by insiders,” per BitcoinEthereumNews. Buterin has proposed solutions like capping transaction gas at 16.77M (EIP-7983) to prevent DoS attacks and promote decentralization, per Cubic Inner Circle on X. Community reactions mix caution and optimism, with calls for better compensation for core developers to retain talent. Regulatory clarity under SEC Chair Paul Atkins, who ruled most crypto non-securities, could ease pressures, per. For DeFi, with $167B TVL, this could boost confidence, but centralization fears persist amid L2 growth like Arbitrum and Optimism, per DeFiLlama.
Buterin’s emphasis on resilient governance and innovation signals Ethereum’s commitment to decentralization, potentially driving ETH to $7,500 by year-end per Standard Chartered. Investors should monitor EF updates on ethereum.org and on-chain staking data via Dune Analytics. Dollar-cost average into ETH with stop-losses below $4,000 support, or diversify into USDC for stability, per TradingView. Follow @TheBlock__ on X for developments. As Ethereum matures, addressing these concerns could solidify its role as a global protocol.
