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“By participating directly in consensus through solo staking, the Ethereum Foundation generates native, ETH-denominated yield to help fund its stewardship of the ecosystem,” the Foundation team said in a blog post.
The decision is consistent with the foundation’s treasury policy introduced last year, which emphasized actively using treasury assets rather than passively holding them. Under this framework, the organization aims to generate returns while continuing to support the Ethereum ecosystem and preserving adequate reserves to finance operations and long-term projects.
“We are excited to take this important step, which helps secure the Ethereum network and at the same time fund the EF’s core operations and activities, including protocol R&D, ecosystem development, community grant funding, and more,” the EF added.
On-chain data indicates that the initial 2,016 ETH was transferred to Ethereum’s staking deposit contract, moving the corresponding validator into the activation queue ahead of becoming operational.
 
Buterin Offloaded 17,000 ETH This Month
The Ethereum Foundation’s on-chain activity coincides with a recent series of personal ETH sales by Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, who has stated that the transactions are tied to efforts supporting the network’s long-term development.
Data from Arkham Intelligence shows that wallets linked to Buterin held roughly 241,000 ETH at the start of February. That balance has since declined to about 224,000 ETH, following a steady series of outflows throughout the month, including $6.6 million over three days earlier in February and nearly $7 million more in the past three days.
He had earlier indicated plans to liquidate about $45 million of the second-largest crypto to support the Ethereum Foundation during what he described as a period of “mild austerity” while maintaining its technical roadmap.
He also noted that he would personally lead certain initiatives that might otherwise fall within the foundation’s scope, focusing on developing a comprehensive open-source software and hardware stack to safeguard both digital and physical environments.
During this period of austerity—aimed at curbing spending—the Ethereum Foundation plans to gradually lower its annual treasury expenditures from 15% to just 5% by 2030.
The Ethereum Foundation experienced a leadership change earlier this month when Co-Executive Director Tomasz Stańczak stepped down. Bastian Aue was named interim Co-Executive Director to fill the role.
The timing of Buterin’s sales is certainly awkward. ETH, the foundation’s primary asset, has fallen roughly 5.4% over the past 7 days and around 34% over the past 30 days, recently trading around $1,891.58, according to CoinGecko data.