Ethereum Leadership Shake-Up Continues With Stark Exit 

Josh Stark, one of four members of the Ethereum Foundation’s management team, is leaving the organization after five years. This marks the most prominent departure since Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin initiated a sweeping leadership restructuring in early 2025. 

Stark’s Exit Follows a Wave of Senior-Level Departures

Stark announced Thursday on X that he will conclude his work at the end of April, with no professional plans lined up beyond an extended personal break. In his post, Stark said his decision was made in early March and framed his departure as a voluntary handover, writing: 

“After 5 years on the @ethereumfndn leadership team, I’ve decided to step away and pass the torch. I’ve made no plans for the future, other than taking a long break to reset and spending time with my family and friends.” 

As one of four individuals listed under “Management” on the Foundation’s organizational chart, the layer into which much of the organization reports, his exit carries significant structural weight. 

The announcement came just one day after contributor Trent Van Epps confirmed he had resigned the previous week, underscoring a pattern of attrition at senior levels of the nonprofit. Reflecting on his tenure, Stark acknowledged the skepticism the ecosystem once faced and the milestones achieved despite it, stating:

“The Ethereum ecosystem has reliably done things the world told us were impossible. It is easy to forget how much real fear and doubt there was that Ethereum would never launch, that decentralized finance (DeFi) would never work, or that Proof of Stake would never ship.” 

Buterin’s 2025 Reset Reshaped Ethereum Foundation Leadership

Stark’s departure cannot be separated from the broader organizational upheaval set in motion by Vitalik Buterin in January 2025. 

Facing sustained criticism from the Ethereum community over the network’s strategic direction, Buterin outlined a comprehensive reset of the Foundation. The plan centered on bringing in fresh talent, deepening internal decentralization, and accelerating technical improvements to transaction throughput and network efficiency. 

He also drew a firm boundary around the Foundation’s mandate, stating it would not engage in ideological disputes, lobby lawmakers, or represent vested commercial interests, stating: 

“These things aren’t what EF does, and this isn’t going to change. People seeking a different vision are welcome to start their own orgs,” 

As part of that transition, the Foundation formalized new co-director appointments in March 2025, naming internal researcher Hsiao-Wei Wang and Nethermind CEO Tomasz Stańczak to lead the organization. That structure has since shifted further: Stańczak stepped down from the co-director role in February 2026, while Wang remains on the management board per the Foundation’s current organizational chart.

Departures Continue With No Replacement Announced

Stańczak, Van Epps, and Stark are among the senior figures to have departed the Ethereum Foundation since Buterin launched his reform effort in 2025. Stark’s exit follows his work across both research and organizational coordination roles. The Foundation has not publicly announced any plans to replace him.

The organization has said it continues to pursue the technical and decentralization priorities established during last year’s overhaul. No timeline for completing the structural transition has been publicly announced.