Ethereum Foundation 'doesn't deserve help' amid funding criticism

The Ethereum Foundation (EF) is facing growing industry criticism over its financial and organizational management. Marc Zeller, founder of the Aave governance group Aave Chan Initiative (ACI), said on X that the EF could have been operated easily with common-sense budgeting. He argued the foundation should have used its reserves as collateral and funded valuable projects instead of things like "52 clients that nobody uses or meetups in Lesotho." Zeller added that after the delayed transition to Proof-of-Stake (PoS), the EF could have staked its vast ETH holdings to operate indefinitely on the returns. "If the EF hits a wall, it doesn't deserve help. Ethereum will be fine though," he concluded. Similarly, Keyring Network founder Alex McPharlane stressed that financial management and DeFi were "taboo subjects" at the EF, where those concerned about finances were seen as not focusing on the big picture. "Now the funding shortage is a reality," he said. McPharlane noted that the EF holds between $500 million and $900 million in liquid assets, which should be sufficient to support a $20 million to $30 million annual budget, calling an inability to manage this "incompetent." This follows a previous warning from Trent Van Epps, who formerly handled core development funding at the Ethereum Foundation. He had pointed out that the Ethereum core development sector could face a funding crisis within three to nine months.