Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has responded to growing community pressure for the Ethereum Foundation (EF) to stake its ETH holdings instead of selling them to cover operational costs.
The debate gained attention after Josh Stark, an EF member, detailed the foundation's current financial practices on social media. According to Stark, EF converts ETH to stablecoins on the Ethereum mainnet to pay contributors and vendors across both mainnet and Layer-2 networks.
This approach drew criticism from Eric Conner, co-author of Ethereum's EIP-1559, who called the foundation's ETH selling strategy "insane." Conner proposed that staking ETH and utilizing decentralized finance tools could maintain the foundation's holdings while generating sufficient revenue for expenses.
Buterin acknowledged these concerns and outlined two main challenges preventing immediate adoption of staking. While regulatory uncertainties have diminished over time, the foundation remains concerned about maintaining neutrality during potential contentious hard forks.
"The foundation is actively exploring ways to address these challenges," Buterin stated, indicating openness to implementing staking strategies that could preserve the organization's impartial position in the ecosystem.
The discussion highlights the evolving dynamics between the Ethereum Foundation's operational needs and its role as a neutral steward of the network's development. As the conversation continues, the community awaits concrete steps from the foundation regarding potential changes to its financial management approach.