- Péter Szilágyi, former Geth lead, alleged in a letter that the Ethereum ecosystem has concentrated control by a small core of 5-10 actors and VC firms.
- Szilágyi claimed that Ethereum’s direction is ultimately controlled by Vitalik Buterin’s friend circle, despite the network’s decentralised nature.
- He warned that privileged funding routes and internal approvals create a “perfect breeding ground” for perverse incentives and potential protocol capture.
Péter Szilágyi, former Geth lead at the Ethereum Foundation, published a year-old letter alleging concentrated control in the ecosystem and outsized sway by Vitalik Buterin.
In an extensive post on GitHub, Szilágyi wrote that most major efforts align around a small core of five to ten actors, often backed by one to three VC firms. Project outcomes, he argued, hinge on access to that circle.
The letter warned that privileged routes to funding and internal approvals expose the Foundation to capture by aligned interests.
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Szilágyi also claimed Ethereum, despite being decentralised, is still fully controlled by Buterin, which is probably not a secret by now, as Buterin himself has noted previously, something that displeased the community.
… Because we set out to create a world of equal opportunity, yet all the most successful projects are directly backed by the same 5-10 people, behind who you can find the same 1-3 VCs. And all this direct control is one happy friend circle of Vitalik. Ethereum’s direction always boiled down to your relationship with Vitalik.
Péter Szilágyi, Former Go Ethereum LeadSzilágyi also disclosed a six-year total pay of about US$625,000 (AU$1,000,000), contrasting contributor compensation with the network’s market growth.
This is simply a perfect breeding ground for perverse incentives, conflicts of interests and eventual protocol capture.
Péter Szilágyi, Former Go Ethereum LeadDisputes, Differences, And Shake-Ups
The Ethereum Foundation has been reshaping operations in recent months. More than once actually, highlighting the inner troubles and differences between its staff and executives.
For example, in March, the EF announced a revamp to its leadership by naming two new co-directors at the helm, Hsiao-Wei Wang and Tomasz Stańcza.
Then the EF announced developer layoffs in June and outlined a revised approach to managing remaining ETH reserves. All in all, to say the Ether community is displeased feels like an understatement, and a lot of it has to do with the way the EF has conducted itself regarding the selling of ETH while the vast majority of cryptocurrencies soared in early and mid-2025.
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