Vitalik Buterin, the co-founder of Ethereum, has issued a call to action for the blockchain community, urging a refocus on the platform’s foundational values of decentralization, privacy, and self-sovereignty. In a recent post on X, Buterin emphasized the importance of reversing the trend of compromising these principles in pursuit of mainstream adoption.
He declared, “2026 is the year that we take back lost ground in terms of self-sovereignty and trustlessness.” He highlighted that recent years have seen Ethereum sacrificing core ideals for broader reach, including increased centralization risks and reduced user control. Buterin advocates for crucial upgrades to address these issues, including enhancements in private payments, lowering barriers to running full nodes, and enabling decentralized applications that do not rely on centralized servers.
Buterin also stressed the importance of user control over on-chain data and better social recovery wallets that safeguard funds when seed phrases are lost or compromised. Over the past decade, he noted, the Ethereum ecosystem has regressed in many of these areas—nodes have become harder to operate, and DApps have evolved into complex structures that leak user data to numerous servers.
Upcoming protocol upgrades, such as the Kohaku release and the Glamsterdam fork, are meant to address many of these issues. Buterin remains optimistic about Ethereum’s future, stating that these improvements will help elevate the ecosystem to a greater prominence in the blockchain universe.
Earlier this week, Buterin emphasized the importance of Ethereum passing the “walkaway test,” which means the network should be able to operate independently of ongoing developer influence over decades. He expressed a vision for Ethereum’s protocols to be cryptographically secure for at least a hundred years, asserting that such durability is an essential goal for future-proofing the network.
Among the critical features Buterin considers vital for Ethereum’s longevity are quantum resistance, scalable architecture, and a block-building model resistant to centralization pressures. These advancements are necessary to ensure Ethereum remains a resilient and independent ecosystem capable of serving global users well into the future.
Buterin also highlighted the need for more innovative decentralized stablecoins. He called for collateralized stablecoins backed by diversified baskets of assets and currencies, moving away from reliance on single-national currencies like the US dollar. Such a shift aims to provide users with greater independence from government-controlled monetary systems.
This article was originally published as Buterin Warns Ethereum Must Prioritize Core Values Over Adoption on Crypto Breaking News – your trusted source for crypto news, Bitcoin news, and blockchain updates.


Lawmakers in the US House of Representatives and Senate met with cryptocurrency industry leaders in three separate roundtable events this week. Members of the US Congress met with key figures in the cryptocurrency industry to discuss issues and potential laws related to the establishment of a strategic Bitcoin reserve and a market structure.On Tuesday, a group of lawmakers that included Alaska Representative Nick Begich and Ohio Senator Bernie Moreno met with Strategy co-founder Michael Saylor and others in a roundtable event regarding the BITCOIN Act, a bill to establish a strategic Bitcoin (BTC) reserve. The discussion was hosted by the advocacy organization Digital Chamber and its affiliates, the Digital Power Network and Bitcoin Treasury Council.“Legislators and the executives at yesterday’s roundtable agree, there is a need [for] a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve law to ensure its longevity for America’s financial future,” Hailey Miller, director of government affairs and public policy at Digital Power Network, told Cointelegraph. “Most attendees are looking for next steps, which may mean including the SBR within the broader policy frameworks already advancing.“Read more
