Tomasz Stanczak To Step Down As Ethereum Foundation Co-Executive Director, Bastian Aue To Take Interim Role

TLDR

• Stanczak will step down as Ethereum Foundation co-ED in February 2026.
• Bastian Aue will serve as interim co-ED with Hsiao-Wei Wang.
• The change follows the April 2025 executive structure update.
• Stanczak plans to remain active in Ethereum core development.

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Tomasz Stanczak will step down as co-executive director of the Ethereum Foundation at the end of February 2026. Bastian Aue will take on the interim co-ED role alongside Hsiao-Wei Wang.

Stanczak confirmed the decision in a blog post published on Friday. He wrote, “I am stepping down from my co-ED role at the EF. Bastian Aue is taking over the co-ED role alongside Hsiao-Wei Wang.”

The transition comes about nine months after the foundation formalized its updated executive structure in April 2025. At that time, Stanczak and Wang were appointed as co-executive directors under a revised governance model.

Stanczak said he plans to address questions at ETHDenver and during upcoming podcasts and AMAs. He also stated that he will remain active in the Ethereum ecosystem as a builder.

Leadership Transition and Executive Structure

The April 2025 restructuring followed community criticism related to transparency and strategic direction. The foundation introduced a new board and management framework to clarify responsibilities and improve coordination.

Aya Miyaguchi moved from executive director to president during that transition. The board, which includes Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, set priorities around scaling, user experience, and ecosystem support.

Stanczak’s departure marks the first leadership change since that structure was introduced. The foundation stated that Bastian Aue is prepared to guide operations during the interim period.

In a statement on X, Miyaguchi described Stanczak as “a unique talent and leader.” She said the foundation accepted the change “with gratitude and hope.” She also expressed confidence in Aue’s ability to provide steady leadership.

Focus on Scaling, AI and Institutional Adoption

In his blog post, Stanczak described Ethereum as entering a new phase shaped by AI systems and institutional finance. He wrote that Ethereum is “becoming the underlying infrastructure for verification and financial transactions.”

He pointed to increased stablecoin and real-world asset activity on the network. He said dashboards show Ethereum’s growing market share in those areas.

Stanczak also referred to Ethereum as “the lowest-risk chain,” citing decentralization and no downtime since genesis. He said these features present institutions with low counterparty and technology risk.

On protocol development, he stated that the foundation plans to release a merged LEAN Ethereum and core development roadmap. This roadmap is expected to guide coordination in 2026 and beyond.

He noted that the network completed two upgrades in 2025. He added that core developers are positioned to continue delivering improvements.

Stanczak also mentioned a defined quantum strategy and post-quantum security work within the protocol roadmap. He said a decentralized AI team is working on standards and experiments for what he described as the “agentic economy.”

Layer 1 and Layer 2 Coordination

Stanczak addressed discussions around the Layer 1 and Layer 2 relationship. He referenced recent posts by Vitalik Buterin that clarified long-observed dynamics.

He said the foundation created a Platform team and brought together more than 20 Layer 2 teams. These discussions focused on scaling, differentiation, and interoperability.

According to Stanczak, major rollups have overtaken alternative Layer 1 chains in stablecoin and transaction metrics. He said the foundation worked to improve decision-making speed and internal processes.

Buterin also commented on Stanczak’s tenure. He wrote on X that Stanczak increased efficiency and encouraged the organization to consider how AI could reshape blockchain systems.

Stanczak confirmed he will remain active as a hands-on builder. He plans to focus on agentic core development and governance while supporting founders and local communities.

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