Ethereum Foundation alumni launch Ethereum Institutional to court banks and asset managers

A new non-profit group called Ethereum Institutional has officially launched today July 1, 2026. The company has a goal of becoming a dedicated point of contact for financial institutions that want to use Ethereum. 

The new non-profit is backed by Bitmine Immersion Technologies (NYSE: BMNR), SharpLink (NASDAQ: SBET), and Ethereum co-founder Joseph Lubin.

What is Ethereum Institutional?

Ethereum Institutional was founded by three former members of the Ethereum Foundation’s enterprise team, namely David Walsh, Marius Smith, and Matthew Dawson. 

Walsh previously built the Ethereum Foundation’s enterprise function and engaged hundreds of institutions over a period of five years, while Dawson held a role as the Foundation’s first enterprise lead.

Ethereum Institutional describes itself as a “neutral, institutional front door” for Ethereum and stated at launch that it will focus on several key areas, including institutional education and engagement, research tailored to financial institutions, marketing for ETH as an institutional asset, surfacing industry requirements for on-chain standards, and hosting events that bring institutions and Ethereum builders together. 

It believes Ethereum’s main selling points are its neutrality and its lead in DeFi, stablecoins, and tokenized assets. 

Ethereum Institutional launched with $48,920 in USDC in its public donation wallet on the Scroll network.

The group’s website states that its target audience includes asset managers, central banks, commercial banks, corporate treasuries, fintechs, market infrastructure operators, regulators, and sovereign institutions.

Who is funding Ethereum Institutional? 

Ethereum Institutional launched with anchor funding from Bitmine Immersion Technologies (NYSE: BMNR), SharpLink (NASDAQ: SBET), and Ethereum co-founder Joseph Lubin. The organization posted on X that a broader list of its supporters will be announced soon.

Both Bitmine and SharpLink stand to benefit directly if there is an increase in the institutional adoption of Ethereum. Cryptopolitan previously reported that Bitmine’s disclosed holdings exceed 5.4 million ETH, making it one of the largest known institutional holders of the token. SharpLink, on the other hand, operates as an institutional-grade Ethereum treasury platform. 

Asset manager Bitwise posted on X in response to the launch that it was “delighted to see Ethereum Institutional organizing to go on offense to meet the moment.”

The news comes as the Ethereum Foundation is in a period of flux. Cryptopolitan reported that it recently cut 54 jobs (roughly 20% of its workforce) as part of a restructuring that began last year. Co-executive directors Tomasz Stańczak and Hsiao-Wei Wang both departed in 2026, leaving board member Bastian Aue as the sole executive managing daily operations.

On the same day as those layoffs, five former Ethereum Foundation researchers launched a separate independent non-profit called Ethlabs. The organization is backed by the same anchor funders as Ethereum Institutional (Bitmine, SharpLink, and Lubin) and is focusing on faster settlement, cross-chain infrastructure, and mainnet capacity improvements.

The Ethereum Foundation itself noted that “realizing Ethereum’s potential” will require organizations to work together and cited several new groups that have formed over the past year.

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