Danny Ryan, a significant contributor within the Ethereum Foundation, recently announced his resignation after seven years of service to the Ethereum ecosystem. He played a crucial role in Ethereum’s transition to a proof-of-stake consensus system, especially during “The Merge,” which marked the blockchain’s move away from proof-of-work. Ryan stated personal reasons for his departure and highlighted that his decision is not a critique of Ethereum or the broader cryptocurrency space. In a post on GitHub, Ryan expressed his readiness to step away from his leadership role within Ethereum to make room for new opportunities.
Reflecting on his time at Ethereum, Ryan emphasized the depth of experience and leadership across the various teams involved in Ethereum’s development. Despite still having some work to do, Ryan believes that the issues are solvable with time and effort. His departure comes at a time when Ethereum’s native token, Ether, is trading at $2,416 as of September 13. Over the years, Ryan played a significant role in the launch of Ethereum’s Beacon Chain in 2021 and was actively involved in providing updates on Ethereum Improvement Proposals through the Foundation’s blog.
In another development, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin announced that starting next year, he will only publicly endorse Layer 2 solutions that have progressed beyond their initial developmental stages. This decision aims to enhance the security and trustworthiness of the Ethereum ecosystem, which currently has various rollup projects at its core. Buterin expressed the need to move away from rollups functioning as “glorified multi-sigs” and towards a future of cryptographic trust with minimal human oversight. He emphasized the importance of endorsing only L2 solutions that are stage 1+ or above, regardless of personal investments or friendships.
Buterin specifically highlighted that several zero-knowledge rollup (ZK-rollup) teams are on track to reach Stage 1 by the end of the year, a pivotal milestone for the broader adoption and trust in Ethereum’s scaling solutions. However, he cautioned against prematurely discarding protective measures before there is confidence in the security of the proof systems. Additionally, Buterin’s recent ETH sales totaling 950 ETH, valued at around $2.28 million, have sparked discussion within the community. His associated wallet, which received 3,800 ETH worth approximately $9.8 million, has executed strategic sales in smaller batches rather than large transactions. The most recent sale involved 190 ETH, converted to $441,971 in USDC, bringing the total sold to 950 ETH.
In conclusion, Danny Ryan’s resignation from the Ethereum Foundation marks the end of a significant chapter in his contributions to Ethereum’s development. Meanwhile, Vitalik Buterin’s decision to only endorse advanced L2 solutions going forward reflects a commitment to enhancing the security and reliability of the Ethereum ecosystem. As Ethereum continues to evolve, it will be interesting to see how these developments shape the future of the blockchain and its applications. Stay tuned for more updates on Ethereum and cryptocurrency news.
