The Ethereum Foundation (EF) has published its updated treasury management policy, outlining how it will steward Ethereum’s financial and strategic future. The policy reveals a robust framework aimed at balancing capital efficiency, ecosystem stewardship, and cypherpunk privacy principles, all while supporting Ethereum’s core values.
🔵 1. Macro Policy: Asset Strategy Built for Resilience
To ensure long-term sustainability, the EF uses an Asset-Liability Management (ALM) approach, balancing risk, liquidity, and Ethereum-aligned values. The model centers on two variables:
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A = Annual Operating Expenses (as % of the treasury)
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B = Opex Buffer in Years
💡 Formula:
A × B = Target Fiat Reserve, informing ETH sale sizes
Total Treasury – A × B determines retained ETH value
As of 2025, the EF targets:
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A = 15%
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B = 2.5 years
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Planned glide path to A = 5% by 2030, reducing operational costs gradually.
The policy supports counter-cyclical deployment: increasing support during downturns and moderating in bull markets.
🟢 2. Crypto Asset Policy: Secure, DeFi-Aligned Capital Allocation
The EF is intensifying its involvement in DeFi to:
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Support secure, audited, permissionless protocols
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Favor conservative, liquid investments
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Uphold privacy and decentralization principles
ETH deployments include:
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Solo staking
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Supplying wETH to lending platforms
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Stablecoin borrowing for yield strategies
New DeFi protocols and tokenized Real-World Assets (RWAs) are being vetted and integrated into the portfolio, aligning with EF’s crypto-native ethos.
🟠 3. Fiat-Denominated Asset Allocation
To ensure operational flexibility, the EF holds fiat assets across:
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Cash & Liquid Instruments – for real-time needs
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Fixed-Term Reserves – bonds and deposits
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Tokenized RWAs – evaluated with the same rigor as crypto assets
This multi-pronged approach blends traditional finance stability with Web3 innovation.
🔴 4. Transparency & Reporting Structure
The EF follows a rigorous internal reporting cadence:
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Quarterly Reports – performance, open/closed positions, ops/security events
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Annual Reports – allocations across fiat, idle ETH, and deployed ETH
This ensures board-level oversight, public accountability, and data-driven decision-making.
🟣 5. Cypherpunk Goals & Defipunk Evaluation Framework
EF introduces Defipunk, a new framework for evaluating DeFi protocols through privacy and decentralization lenses.
Core Criteria Include:
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Permissionless access (no KYC/whitelists)
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Self-custody defaults
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FLOSS codebase
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Privacy protections (on-chain data & UI behavior)
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Oracle minimization and decentralization
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Transparent, immutable governance
🔐 EF aims to support projects meeting these principles and leads by example through secure internal practices and privacy-friendly tools.
🟡 6. Enduring Stewardship Through DeFi
Ethereum Foundation is evolving from passive ETH holding to active DeFi participation:
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Investing in staking, lending, and vetted protocols
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Supporting DeFi as “base-layer financial infrastructure”
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Setting ethical precedents for treasury management
With a roadmap that prioritizes financial sustainability, privacy, and decentralization, the EF intends to build a lasting, principled presence in crypto finance.
✅ Summary
The Ethereum Foundation’s new treasury policy demonstrates a shift from simple ETH holding to active crypto-native financial strategy. With a sharp focus on DeFi, privacy, and long-term sustainability, the EF is positioning itself as a responsible and visionary steward of Ethereum’s future.