Bankless founder liquidates ETH holdings, Ethereum faith collectively shattered

Original｜Odaily Planet Daily (@OdailyChina)

Author｜Wenser (@wenser 2010 )

ETH is once again facing a "crisis of faith." This time, the spark was ignited by Bankless, a crypto media outlet that has long championed Ethereum. Co-founder David Hoffman proactively posted that he had "sold his last ETH." Community user @Ox_Lucas also revealed that Bankless recently appears to have laid off most of its team members. Undoubtedly, "the loyal Ethereum guard has reached its moment to exit."

In 2026, as the wave of tokenizing US stocks surges and crypto ETFs become institutional standard assets, this should have been Ethereum's moment in the spotlight. However, the debunking of the L2 roadmap, the exodus of top Foundation executives, and ETH's price action of falling without recovering have left its position quite awkward.

David Hoffman's liquidation may be the beginning of the "Ethereum Guard's exit."

Co-founder Steps Back, Bankless Enters Phase Two

Perhaps newcomers are not very familiar with Bankless. Since its founding in 2020, it has been the "mouthpiece media" for the Ethereum ecosystem, and the Bankless DAO established around it was once the "premier DAO organization community." But now, Bankless has ended its "Phase One" development journey and must inevitably enter its second phase.

After David Hoffman posted about liquidating his ETH, another Bankless co-founder, Ryan Sean Adams, quickly followed up, stating: "Time to come out publicly. The first era of Bankless is over. It was six years of David and I exploring crypto, DeFi, and Ethereum maxi together. We are now in the second era."

"In this era, I plan to step back and support David in exploring new frontiers in crypto and beyond. I will still co-host the podcast weekly (never miss a recap meeting), but my role in content direction and guest interviews will be reduced. David will continue to lead, and I fully support him. Personally, I remain bullish on ETH and Bullish on Bankless."

Today, six years after its founding, Bankless has achieved remarkable success: besides interviews with prominent figures like Vitalik, Chris Dixon, and Hayden Adams, the media outlet has amassed 280,000 YouTube subscribers and 350,000 newsletter readers. Its podcast has received high ratings of 4.7 stars on platforms like Spotify and Apple Podcasts and has been listed by multiple media outlets among the "Top 10 Best Crypto Podcasts," with many calling it the "Ultimate Guide for Web3 Education."

But now, David Hoffman's dissatisfaction is palpable, even going so far as to "liquidate ETH" to express his stance, with his criticism squarely aimed at the Ethereum Foundation.

"When the Most Loyal Ethereum Guard Decides to Liquidate ETH": Bankless Co-founder Blasts the Ethereum Foundation

After David Hoffman's post, it quickly sparked heated discussion within the Ethereum community. Some joked that "leaving the Ethereum ecosystem periodically and returning" is a regular occurrence, calling him a "seasonal indicator," suggesting that when he turns bullish on ETH again, it will be a sign of market highs and a time to watch for risk.

David Hoffman responded directly: "I have always supported the Ethereum blockchain network, but the ETH asset is becoming increasingly questionable. Let's not conflate the two."

Subsequently, a community member asked point-blank: "Are you supporting ETH but questioning the Ethereum Foundation?"

David Hoffman didn't mince words in his answer, stating: "Unfortunately, you cannot separate the price performance of ETH from its leadership." His dissatisfaction with the Ethereum Foundation, the "bellwether of the ecosystem," was plain to see.

It's worth noting that this is not the first time David Hoffman has expressed dissatisfaction with the Ethereum Foundation:

• Last April, when ETH fell below $1,500, he publicly stated that "Ethereum's leadership and culture are driving away users and developers";
• Last October, the departure of Ethereum Foundation researcher Dankrad Feist also led him to express concerns about talent loss in the Ethereum ecosystem;
• This March, he directly criticized the Ethereum Foundation in his article "The EF's Endless Manifestos" for "not working hard enough on Ethereum's market expansion."

Now, it seems David Hoffman's attitude towards ETH and the Ethereum Foundation has long transitioned from "grieving its lack of ambition, angered by its misfortune" to "the deepest sorrow is greater than the death of the heart."

On the other side of the story, of course, is the "underperformance" of ETH and the Ethereum Foundation themselves.

According to Coinglass data, the ETH/BTC exchange rate once dropped to 0.02835 on May 12, hitting its lowest level since July 2025, down over 35% from the August 2025 high of 0.04324.

Meanwhile, the Ethereum Foundation is also experiencing an exodus: On May 19, Ethereum Foundation researchers Carl Beek and Julian Ma officially announced their impending departures. The former served the organization for seven years, while the latter worked at the EF for four years, accompanying the foundation through thousands of days and nights.

Previously, several senior executives and researchers had already left the Ethereum Foundation, including co-Executive Director Tomasz K. Stańczak who left in February, Josh Stark in March, and Protocol team leads Barnabé Monnot, Tim Beiko, and Alex Stokes who announced their resignations earlier this month. Since the beginning of the year, at least 8 senior figures have left the Ethereum Foundation.

Ridiculously, a major reason for these departures seems to be the absurd catalyst of the Ethereum Foundation requiring employees to sign loyalty oaths, a situation that is both bewildering and ironic.

Combined with the Ethereum Foundation's continuous selling of ETH regardless of market conditions, even directly conducting over-the-counter (OTC) trades with Ethereum DAT treasury company Bitmine, this organization appears to have lost its "last bit of foundational support." With internal talent loss and external competitive weakness, the future of the Ethereum Foundation seems somewhat dimmer than Bankless's.

After DAT, What's the Next Solution for Ethereum?

Last April, after attending the ETH Hangzhou offline event, this author wrote an article based on interviews titled "ETH Hangzhou On-Site Survey: Ethereum Has Entered Middle Age, No Hope for New Price Highs Within Three Years". At that time, ETH's price was also struggling near the baseline, and many held little hope for its future performance. However, with the DAT craze hitting in June and July, buying pressure from listed companies like Bitmine and Sharplink managed to push ETH's price high to nearly $5,000.

Now, ETH's price has already halved by over 50% from its peak. The difference is that when people discuss Ethereum now, they no longer consider it the sole answer for "new financial infrastructure." The L2 roadmap has been thoroughly debunked, and Hyperliquid has become the new "on-chain infrastructure." What is the next solution awaiting ETH and Ethereum? No one can give a definitive answer.

Compared to the past, when token prices fell but ecosystem development was in full swing, perhaps the now-silent Ethereum ecosystem is even more despairing. David Hoffman may have his own reasons for liquidating ETH, but the fact that he is increasingly drifting away from the Ethereum ecosystem is undeniable.