Ethereum Drama: Vitalik’s ‘Friend Circle’ Accused of Running the Show

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Oh, great. Another Ethereum scandal, because, you know, that’s exactly what the world needed. This time, it’s Péter Szilágyi, a key Ethereum developer, who’s going around spilling the beans about Vitalik Buterin and his “gang” having way too much control over the network. Oh, and I bet this wasn’t exactly the dinner conversation they wanted to have.

In a letter to the Ethereum Foundation, Szilágyi whined about how Ethereum has evolved into a little playground run by Vitalik and his buddies. According to him, the same handful of people and venture capitalists are pulling all the strings. It’s basically a “one happy friend circle of Vitalik.” Yeah, sounds like the world’s most exclusive club that no one’s invited to except them.

And guess what? Szilágyi, who leads the Geth client team (so, like, a pretty big deal in the crypto world), said he felt completely let down by the Foundation. He’s not thrilled with the fact that Vitalik’s influence is the deciding factor in whether projects live or die. So, if you’re not in with Vitalik, well, good luck getting anything done. Sounds like a nightmare, right?

Power Play and Sour Grapes

Szilágyi then went on to complain about how the Foundation is all about “perceived leadership” while secretly calling all the shots behind closed doors. And here’s a fun tidbit: he described his role as a “useful fool for the Foundation in a lose-lose situation.” So, yeah, definitely not a fun place to work. But the kicker? His total salary during Ethereum’s first six years was only $625,000. Oh, poor guy, right? That’s like getting a gold star for being a good employee… but with no bonus.

He went on to argue that this low pay pushed early Ethereum contributors to look elsewhere for money. Which, surprise, led to “perverse incentives, conflicts of interests, and eventual protocol capture.” So, if you thought Ethereum was all about decentralization, think again. It’s starting to sound more like a high school popularity contest with Vitalik at the top.

In his final act of grumbling, Szilágyi claimed that Ethereum is now all about a “ruling elite” of insiders. That’s right, the same small group of people is backing all the “successful” projects. Looks like it’s not what you know, it’s who you know… and who you can get into Vitalik’s friend circle.

Vitalik Plays Nice with Polygon

Meanwhile, Vitalik’s out here praising Polygon and its co-founder, Sandeep Nailwal. Because, of course, why not praise the folks who help keep Ethereum’s ecosystem alive? He gave a shout-out to Polygon’s early work on ZK-EVM development and praised Sandeep for returning $190 million in SHIB donations. That’s cool, but doesn’t it kind of sound like the kid who shows up late to class and hands out candy to get everyone to like them?

I really appreciate both @sandeepnailwal’s personal contributions and @0xPolygon’s immensely valuable role in the ethereum ecosystem.

To recap:

* Polygon hosts @Polymarket, which is probably the single most successful example of a “not just boring finance” app that has actually…

– vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) October 21, 2025

Vitalik also said nice things about AggLayer and how it’ll help Ethereum’s scalability. Because, of course, no Ethereum update can go unnoticed without Vitalik dropping a glowing review. And let’s not forget Sandeep’s charitable work with CryptoRelief. So, while Vitalik’s showering people with praise, Szilágyi’s over here throwing a tantrum.

Foundation Shuffles Testnets

But wait, there’s more! Ethereum’s Foundation is making some “major changes” to its testing infrastructure. Because, hey, what better time to shake things up than when your developers are already upset? They’re winding down Holešky, a testnet that’s been running since 2023. Now, operators have to migrate to the new Hoodi and Sepolia networks. And you thought your work problems were complicated!

Holešky degradation will begin this week. The network has served its purpose for Fusaka testing and operators will start shutting down their nodes at various points over the next 10 days.

Please refer to this post for further details.

– Ethereum Foundation (@ethereumfndn) October 20, 2025

So, after all the drama, Holešky is officially getting the boot. It played a role in major upgrades like Dencun, Pectra, and Fusaka. But now that Fusaka’s done its thing, it’s out with the old and in with the new. So, if you had any sentimental attachment to Holešky, well, tough luck.

And just to add insult to injury, Ethereum’s price is down 4.86% in the last 24 hours, sitting at $3,850.09. With a trading volume of $37.9 billion, I’m sure they’re all crying into their crypto wallets right now.

So, yeah, Ethereum’s trying to hold onto its decentralized roots, but it’s clear that only a select few are holding the reins. Good luck, everyone! 🙄

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2025-10-21 11:45