ethlabs

Ethereum Foundation (EF) researcher Francesco D'Amato (fradamt) announced his departure from EF to join the newly established protocol development organization Ethlabs. D'Amato worked at EF for 5 years and was involved in several core research areas including MEV, consensus mechanisms, data availability sampling (DAS), and execution layer pricing.

EthLabs founder Barnabé Monnot (barnabé.eth) released the Week 2 update, summarizing the team's latest progress in the launch and financing phase as well as the direction of ecological discussions. In terms of interoperability (Interop), the team stated that they are enhancing confidence in asynchronous interoperability based on zero-knowledge proofs (zk), believing this will help build safer cross-chain bridges and improve the native distribution capabilities of assets in Ethereum's multi-layer network.Currently, some cross-chain paths still experience delays, especially in the L2 → L1 direction; in this context, the intents mechanism can serve as a transitional solution, while sufficient L1 liquidity also helps match cross-chain executors (solvers). At the same time, the L1 → L2 path is expected to significantly reduce confirmation delays through the Fast Confirmation Rule (FCR), with clients already beginning to integrate this mechanism.In terms of ecological discussions, PropAMMs (Proposal-based AMM) have become a recent focus for multiple teams and researchers, with the core being the potential optimization space between L1 execution efficiency and transaction building (block building). Meanwhile, ENS is emphasized as a key infrastructure for Ethereum, and the team is continuously communicating with relevant stakeholders to advance its development direction. Regarding team building, Ethlabs has currently received over 300 applications, processed about 20%, with a short-term goal of expanding to around 10 people and a mid-term goal of expanding to about 20 people, focusing on recruiting talents with engineering capabilities and domain expertise.In terms of financing, Ethlabs stated that the current financing is nearing completion and has received early support from BitMNR, Sharplink, and Ethereum Joseph, planning to bring in 1-2 core investors before entering the next phase.

According to BBX data, the two largest publicly listed reserve companies for Ethereum issued a counter-cyclical buy signal yesterday, with the core dynamics as follows:SharpLink, Inc. (NASDAQ: $SBET) (one of the largest publicly listed reserve companies for Ethereum, founded by CEO Joe Lubin, formerly known as SharpLink Gaming, transitioning to Ethereum Treasury in May 2025) released an official press release on June 30: the company purchased an additional 10,000 ETH at an average price of $1,611 per coin, raising its total holdings to 886,725 ETH; during the same period, it repurchased 2,132,773 shares of common stock (average price $4.69), bringing the total repurchased since the buyback program started in August 2025 to 4,071,223 shares. This ETH purchase was funded by the company's previously completed $75 million targeted issuance (registered direct offering). CEO Joseph Chalom stated that this fundraising "provides capital support for proactive ETH treasury management strategies." The company's average purchase cost for 886,725 ETH is approximately $3,609 per coin, and with the current price around $1,611, the paper loss is about $1.77 billion; however, the company earned approximately 18,800 ETH in staking rewards in Q1 (equivalent to about $30 million per quarter at current prices), with revenue of $12.1 million during the same period (a 16-fold increase compared to $742,000 in the same period last year). The company has officially been included in the Russell 2000 and Russell 3000 indices, which will trigger passive buying from active and passive funds tracking these two indices, potentially broadening the institutional shareholder base and increasing access to capital markets.Bitmine Immersion Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: $BMNR), as of June 26, according to the latest data cited by CoinDesk, the company's ETH holdings have risen to approximately 5.67 million coins (an increase of about 280,000 coins compared to the 5.39 million disclosed in the SEC 8-K on May 26), with a net increase of about 52,203 coins in the previous week (equivalent to about $82 million); the company's chairman Tom Lee stated on June 26: "We are maintaining a steady accumulation pace throughout 2026, and we believe we are in the early stages of a Crypto Spring." At the current price of about $1,610, the market value of 5.67 million ETH is approximately $9.13 billion; during the same period, Bitmine jointly funded the Ethlabs nonprofit research organization with SharpLink and Ethereum co-founder Joe Lubin (founded by former Ethereum Foundation researchers, focusing on Ethereum infrastructure and institutional research), further strengthening the institutional narrative support for the ETH ecosystem through the endorsement of the three organizations.

Ethlabs published a response on platform X regarding its nonprofit positioning and funding situation, stating that the choice to operate under a nonprofit structure is to focus on the long-term development needs of Ethereum as a "public good" and to maintain the organization's independence and neutrality in research and development.In terms of governance structure, Ethlabs pointed out that its funding comes from large ETH holders and Ethereum ecosystem builders, whose interests are highly aligned with the long-term success of Ethereum, but they will not gain any governance control or participate in roadmap formulation or project prioritization decisions. Ethlabs emphasized that this arrangement is intentionally designed to avoid external funding influencing core directions.At the same time, Ethlabs stated that the future continuous financing mechanism itself is also a form of "accountability mechanism," meaning that only by continuously creating real value for the Ethereum ecosystem can they obtain subsequent funding support, thus forming a long-term feedback loop.Regarding funding, Ethlabs revealed that it is currently in the final stages of financing and has not disclosed specific amounts, but the committed funds already obtained are expected to support an operational cycle of 2 to 3 years and cover the recruitment needs for top talent. Ethlabs emphasized its positioning as a long-term project, not a one-time funding plan.

The new research lab Ethlabs was launched this week, co-funded by Ethereum co-founder Joe Lubin, Bitmine Immersion Technologies holding approximately 5.7 million ETH, and Sharplink holding approximately 876,000 ETH, with the specific funding amount undisclosed.Sharplink CEO Joseph Chalom stated that Ethlabs will complement the Ethereum Foundation, but acknowledged that the two will "overlap in certain areas," and that "the most concentrated talent" will be at Ethlabs. The lab focuses on faster settlement, cross-chain interoperability, and readiness for institutional and AI applications, which highly overlaps with the priorities of the Foundation after its reorganization this week.This move comes as the Ethereum Foundation cut about 40% of its 2026 budget and eliminated 54 positions this week, with Vitalik Buterin defining it as a shift towards a donation fund model. Former Foundation core development coordinator Trent Van Epps warned last week that core development faces a funding gap in three to nine months. Ethlabs' first real test will be the Glamsterdam upgrade, where the roadmaps of the two organizations will intersect for the first time in a limited upgrade queue.

The Ethereum community is debating the proposal to tax staking rewards. The newly established EthLabs has received support from institutions such as BitMine, providing off-chain funding alternatives for ecological development.

David Hoffman, the founder of Bankless who previously liquidated all ETH, posted on X about the newly established Ethlabs, stating: "The Ethereum Foundation (EF) has deliberately left a power vacuum for new organizational structures to emerge and influence the direction of Ethereum's development. I believe the direction led by Ethlabs represents the brightest future for Ethereum. I am pleased and will continue to support them on their path forward."Previously, David Hoffman publicly stated in late May that he had liquidated all ETH. Last night, several former Ethereum Foundation researchers announced the establishment of the nonprofit organization Ethlabs, aimed at promoting Ethereum's next phase of growth, with support from Bitmine, SharpLink, and Joe Lubin among others.

According to GlobeNewswire, former Ethereum Foundation researchers have established an independent nonprofit organization called Ethlabs, supported by Bitmine, SharpLink, Ethereum co-founder Joe Lubin, and ecosystem participants such as Anchorage, Octant, and SNZ, aiming to prepare for the next phase of institutional adoption of Ethereum. The five co-founders include Ansgar Dietrichs, Barnabé Monnot, Caspar Schwarz-Schilling, Josh Rudolf, and Julian Ma, who have led significant upgrades to the network over the past decade. Ethlabs' early work will focus on the demand for large-scale institutional on-chain solutions: faster settlement speeds, native issuance, cross-chain transactions based on robust infrastructure, mainnet capacity, and research laying the foundation for ETH's monetary properties.