Ethereum Foundation Cuts Workforce by 20%, Reduces Annual Spend to 5% Post-2030

The Ethereum Foundation has undergone significant restructuring, cutting its workforce by 20% and reducing its annual spend by 40%. This move is aimed at maintaining a 5% annual spend of its remaining funds post-2030. The reorganization process, which began months ago, has resulted in the creation of five new clusters: protocol layer, access layer, user layer, community layer, and institutional layer. Two additional clusters will focus on operations and management.

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin acknowledged that the downsizing is a painful but necessary step, stating that it is not an efficiency increase. He emphasized his respect for his EF colleagues and acknowledged the loss of valuable team members.

The Ethereum Foundation has been under criticism recently due to the departure of several senior researchers and executives, including former executive directors Hsiao-Wei Wang and Tomasz Stańczak, Protocol Cluster lead Tim Beiko, and Operations and Writing Lead Josh Stark. The EF's decision to reduce its workforce has sparked debate about the direction of the Ethereum ecosystem.

Ethereum has been facing a bearish bias, with its price holding below the 20-, 50- and 100-day Exponential Moving Averages (EMAs) at roughly $1,753, $1,901, and $2,064. The top altcoin remains below the broken descending trendline trigger near $1,729 and the horizontal cap at $1,741.