A former Ethereum Foundation contributor is raising alarms about a possible funding crunch for the network’s core development. Trent Van Epps, who worked on protocol coordination until April 2026, believes the ecosystem may only have three to nine months before financial gaps emerge for core developers and researchers. In a new analysis, he suggests that Ethereum needs roughly $30 million each year to sustain stability across client teams, research efforts, and coordination bodies that handle upgrades and reliability.
Van Epps identifies two main pressures causing this potential crisis. The Ethereum Foundation has adopted a treasury policy that aims to reduce annual spending from 15% of its holdings to just 5% by 2030. Simultaneously, the Client Incentive Program (CIP), initiated in 2021 to reward client teams for maintaining network health, expired in April 2026 without a clear successor. He argues that the loss of these funds risks driving away experienced developers and complicates long-term work like scaling and quantum-resistant security research.
The debate extends beyond immediate funding to broader questions of governance. Vitalik Buterin previously noted that the Foundation was never meant to be an eternal steward, and Van Epps echoes that sentiment, advocating for diverse funding sources rather than central control. However, critics like Gabriel Shapiro argue that without formal onchain or offchain governance, any funding mechanism risks relying on subjective alignment. Van Epps counters that his aim is to secure neutral and stable support for core contributors without granting unchecked power to any single entity.
Protocol Guild, a collective fund supporting Ethereum L1 developers through token vesting, remains a viable option, but Van Epps insists that more durable structures are essential. While the Foundation continues to fund key projects like Geth, Erigon, and Lighthouse through Q1 2026 grants, the long-term sustainability of core development is uncertain. He emphasizes that the issue is not about technical failure but about ensuring the network’s foundational infrastructure receives the stable support it needs to evolve.