Ethereum Foundation co-ED Tomasz Stańczak to step down at end of February 2026

Ethereum Foundation co-executive director Tomasz Stańczak says he will step down from his co-ED role at the end of February 2026, with Bastian Aue taking over the co-ED position alongside Hsiao-Wei.

Stańczak’s update reads less like a sudden shakeup and more like a baton pass. He frames the EF as being in a “healthy state,” says the leadership team has gained confidence in decision-making, and argues the organization has moved faster over the past year on issues ranging from internal process to how it communicates and engages with builders and institutions.

What’s changing at the Ethereum Foundation

The headline change is leadership structure: Stańczak is out as co-ED by end-February, and Aue steps in to share the role with Hsiao-Wei.

Stańczak also points to a set of organizational goals he says are either completed or improving—speeding up decision-making, better outreach to younger builders, clearer internal/external transparency around budgets and structure, and becoming more open to institutions while staying grounded in Ethereum’s cypherpunk values.

What Stańczak says is coming next for Ethereum’s roadmap

On protocol direction, Stańczak says the EF plans to release a proposal “very soon” for a merged LEAN Ethereum and core development roadmap, intended to give clearer guidance and coordination for 2026 and beyond.

He also flags three areas where EF teams are pushing hard:

• A “very clear” quantum strategy, with researchers finalizing specs and engineers working on implementations, and post-quantum security positioned inside the protocol roadmap.
• A dedicated decentralized AI team working on standards, experiments, and solutions for what he calls the “agentic economy.”
• Continued work on L1–L2 coordination, including a Platform team and discussions with more than 20 Ethereum L2s, plus an expectation that major rollups keep overtaking alternative L1s on stablecoin and TPS metrics.

Stańczak’s next chapter

Stańczak says he plans to stay hands-on—working more like a core dev and product builder, and focusing on agentic core development and governance. He also says he intends to keep traveling, working with local communities, and helping businesses build on Ethereum.

Why it matters for crypto

• EF leadership continuity is now explicit. The EF is framing this as a planned transition: Aue in, Hsiao-Wei continuing, Stańczak moving to hands-on building.
• The roadmap messaging is tightening. A merged LEAN + core dev roadmap proposal “very soon” is a signal the EF wants clearer coordination narratives in 2026.
• Post-quantum planning is being elevated. Stańczak puts quantum strategy directly into EF protocol priorities, not as a distant research footnote.
• Institutions remain a central theme. Stańczak repeatedly frames Ethereum as institutional infrastructure (stablecoins/RWAs, “lowest-risk chain,” and expanded institutional openness).

What to watch next

• End of February 2026: the formal handoff as Stańczak steps down and Aue assumes the co-ED role.
• Release of the merged LEAN Ethereum + core dev roadmap proposal, which Stańczak says is coming “very soon.”
• DeFi coordination roadmap post: Stańczak says the EF DeFi coordination team will publish plans “in the coming weeks.”
• Signals on the quantum track: specs finalization and any concrete implementation milestones tied to post-quantum security.

Source: Ethereum Foundation blog – An update from Tomasz