Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin disclosed on Tuesday that the Ethereum Foundation pays him an annual salary of approximately $140,000. This revelation comes as the organization, which is central to Ethereum’s development and research, prepares to release a new spending report amid growing public scrutiny over its budget.
Buterin, a Canadian programmer who played a pivotal role in establishing the Swiss-based nonprofit in 2014, shared details of his salary on social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter). In his post, Buterin included a snippet of the upcoming report, revealing that his salary is denominated in Singapore dollars, amounting to 182,000 SGD, which is roughly equivalent to $140,000 USD.
The Ethereum Foundation supports the Ethereum ecosystem by funding research, offering grants, and organizing events. Although Buterin is widely regarded as a visionary in the crypto industry, he remains one of three members on the Foundation’s executive board, helping to steer the organization’s initiatives.
The Foundation, which describes itself as “part of a larger community of organizations and individuals that fund protocol development,” has long maintained that it neither owns nor controls Ethereum’s network. However, its financial practices have recently come under scrutiny.
Last week, concerns arose after the Ethereum Foundation transferred approximately $94 million worth of Ether (ETH) to the cryptocurrency exchange Kraken. In response, Executive Director Aya Miyaguchi revealed the organization’s annual budget via X, stating that it is around $100 million, primarily allocated to grants and salaries.
“This year, there was a long period when we were advised not to engage in any treasury activities due to regulatory complications,” Miyaguchi explained.
These developments come on the heels of reports earlier this year that the Ethereum Foundation was under investigation by a “state authority.” Additionally, a lawsuit filed by blockchain software company ConsenSys alleged that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was investigating Ethereum. Although ConsenSys later claimed that the investigation was dropped in June without any charges, the SEC sued ConsenSys the same month, alleging that the firm violated securities laws through its MetaMask wallet’s Swaps and Staking services.
The Ethereum Foundation’s forthcoming spending report is expected to shed further light on how the nonprofit manages its funds, which will be closely watched by both supporters and critics of the organization.
