Blockchain Researcher Defends Ethereum Foundation, Says It’s ‘Exactly’ Doing Its Job
William Mougayar says critics judge the Ethereum Foundation by the wrong standard, arguing it exists to steward the protocol, not market ETH.
Intelligence analysis by GPT-5.4 Mini

The piece argues the Ethereum Foundation is meant to reduce its own importance over time, not act like a promoter for ETH. It comes amid criticism over ETH sales, unstaking, and silence as the token lags its peak.
A group helps keep a big road working. Some people get mad because the road’s sticker price is going down and want that group to act like a sales team.
The story says one expert thinks that is the wrong job. He says the group should keep the road safe and strong, not buy ads to make people cheer for it.
It is like blaming the builders of a playground because the swings are not popular on their own. Their job is to fix and maintain, not to run a toy commercial.
Analysis
What Mougayar is arguing
William Mougayar says the Ethereum Foundation is being judged as if it were a marketing arm for ETH, when he sees it as a protocol steward. In his view, ETH, Ethereum, and the Foundation are different things with different jobs, so complaints about price performance are aimed at the wrong target.
The Foundation’s role
He describes the EF as following a “subtraction path,” meaning it should matter less over time as the protocol becomes more self-sustaining. Mougayar says the Foundation is hardening the network, shipping upgrades, and funding research that others do not fund. He also compares expectations that the EF should promote ETH to expecting the IETF to run ads for TCP/IP.
Why critics are upset
The article notes the Foundation has faced criticism in recent months over ETH sales, unstaking activity, and public silence. Earlier this month, it sold 10,000 ETH to BitMine Immersion Technologies at an average price of $2,292, after two earlier transactions. The article says those sales, combined with recent unstaking moves, fueled accusations that the EF is hurting ETH’s price.
Market context
Cointelegraph says ETH was trading at $2,117.09, up on the day but still more than 57% below its all-time high of $4,953 from August last year. The story frames the debate as one about what the Foundation should be responsible for, and whether token holders are expecting it to do a job it was never built to do.
Key points
- William Mougayar says the Ethereum Foundation is doing the job it was designed to do.
- He argues the Foundation is a protocol steward, not a marketing engine for ETH.
- The article says criticism has grown after ETH sales, unstaking, and silence from the Foundation.
- ETH remains far below its all-time high despite a daily rebound.
- The Foundation recently sold and unstaked large amounts of ETH, which drew fresh scrutiny.



