Trent Van Epps, who previously worked in the Ethereum ecosystem, said that the network has entered a critical transition period in its long-term decentralization strategy. According to Van Epps, the focus of the debate is not the existence of Ethereum, but how the public infrastructure will be financed in the future.
Foundation retreats to narrower role
Van Epps attributed his decision to leave the Ethereum Foundation to the fact that it became clear that the organization would accelerate its approach aimed at extending authority and legitimacy to the broader ecosystem. According to him, the Foundation is consciously reducing its central role rather than concentrating power in one hand, and over time, it is aimed for more than one independent institution to coordinate the ecosystem together.
Ethereum Foundation is known as a non-profit structure that plays an important role in the research, development and ecosystem support of the Ethereum network. Recent management changes and workforce reductions in the institution have raised questions about Ethereum’s future governance model.
According to Trent Van Epps’ assessment, the main problem facing Ethereum is not an asset crisis, but the finding of new institutions that will finance the infrastructure that produces public benefits.
Annual core development need of $30 million
Van Epps noted that core protocol development requires approximately $30 million annually. On the other hand, he argued that the Ethereum Foundation treasury was gradually shrinking over time, so institutional structures that would meet these needs, not technical needs, came to the fore.
According to him, the Protocol Guild initiative distributed approximately $40 million to Ethereum’s core developers in approximately four years. However, he shared the view that this mechanism alone would not be sufficient to replace broader ecosystem financing.
Mini dictionary: Protocol Guild is a funding initiative created to provide long-term support to developers contributing to Ethereum’s core protocol. Public benefit financing refers to the support of common infrastructure that does not directly generate income but is necessary for the security and continuity of the network.
| Pen | Data |
|---|---|
| Annual core development need | $30 million |
| Protocol Guild distribution | Approximately $40 million in 4 years |
Competitive advantage and the free beneficiary problem
Van Epps remained optimistic about Ethereum despite the funding debates. He stated that the network continues to lead in decentralized finance, stablecoin consensus and EVM adoption, and that these network effects cannot be easily copied by competitors.
However, he thinks that coordination problems may persist in the short term, but new institutions and major stakeholders may step in to finance common infrastructure. He drew attention to the free beneficiary problem as one of the main obstacles that need to be solved. This means that although companies benefit from shared infrastructure, they do not contribute to the cost of maintenance and development.
Van Epps predicts that Ethereum governance will become more decentralized over the next decade, with the Ethereum Foundation remaining in a more limited role, with new structures focused on research, commercialization and ecosystem growth.
Governance may be more decentralized in the coming period
According to Van Epps, another need for Ethereum is to create a stronger advocacy language for the ETH asset and a framework that more clearly explains the link between the token and the growth in the on-chain economy. He stated that the long-term success criterion should be wider adoption, and billions of users will be able to access the Ethereum and Layer 2 ecosystem over time.
