The Ethereum Foundation’s Protocol Support team has been disbanded, marking the end of the group responsible for coordinating key aspects of Ethereum’s protocol development. The announcement was made by the team on July 9, confirming its dissolution as part of the Ethereum Foundation’s broader organizational restructuring.
The latest restructuring comes as the Ethereum Foundation has seen a series of high-profile leadership departures in recent months. Most recently, Co-Executive Director Hsiao-Wei Wang announced her resignation, bringing the total number of senior leaders who have left the Foundation to eight in the past five months.
the EF Protocol Support team has been dissolved 🖖
— EF Protocol Support (@EFprotocol) July 9, 2026
The Protocol Support team played a central role in Ethereum’s development process by organizing All Core Developers meetings, tracking network upgrades, supporting Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs), managing the Ethereum Protocol Fellowship program, and contributing to developer education, community engagement, and ecosystem infrastructure.
Team Dissolution Follows Foundation Restructuring
The move comes weeks after the Ethereum Foundation unveiled a major internal restructuring aimed at streamlining operations and improving protocol execution. As part of the changes announced in late June, the Foundation reduced its workforce by approximately 20% and reorganized its teams around core strategic priorities.
While the restructuring outlined a new organizational model, the Protocol Support team’s latest statement confirms that the group itself has now been dissolved. The team did not specify how its responsibilities will be distributed going forward.
I was getting questions about recent EF layoffs and my situation so I should share something public as well.
I am still part of EF, continuing my work and figuring out what’s most needed in the future. However, all of my team, Protocol Support, that I have been part for 5+… https://t.co/KRgKxiXQpa
— Mario Havel (@TMIYChao) July 8, 2026
Mario Havel, a member of the former Protocol Support team, also confirmed the development, stating that the entire team had been dissolved. However, he noted that Ethereum’s protocol development efforts will continue under the Foundation’s new structure.
Critical Role in Ethereum Development
Before its dissolution, the Protocol Support team served as a coordination hub for Ethereum’s technical roadmap rather than contributing protocol code directly. Its work helped facilitate collaboration between core developers, researchers, client teams, and the broader Ethereum community, ensuring network upgrades and Ethereum Improvement Proposals progressed efficiently.
The team also operated the Ethereum Protocol Fellowship, an initiative designed to onboard new protocol contributors and strengthen Ethereum’s long-term developer ecosystem.
Transition to New Organizational Structure
The Ethereum Foundation has not yet announced which teams or individuals will assume the Protocol Support team’s responsibilities. Despite the organizational changes, the Foundation has emphasized that Ethereum’s protocol development, network upgrades, and technical coordination will continue under its revised operational structure.
The dissolution reflects the Foundation’s ongoing efforts to reshape its internal operations as Ethereum continues to evolve, with a greater focus on execution efficiency, protocol research, and long-term ecosystem sustainability.
