A group of former Ethereum Foundation employees has launched EthSystems, a for-profit company backed by Bitmine, SharpLink, and ConsenSys CEO Joe Lubin, to build confidential infrastructure for institutional Ethereum users. The startup, announced Tuesday, aims to help banks, asset managers, and other regulated entities use the public Ethereum network without exposing sensitive data like trading positions or client identities.
Spun out of the Foundation
EthSystems was created by Mo Jalil, Oskar Thorén, and Aaryamann Challani, who previously led the Ethereum Foundation's Institutional Privacy Task Force. The venture is backed by Bitmine and SharpLink, two major Ethereum treasury firms, along with Lubin, a co-founder of Ethereum. The launch follows a major restructuring at the Ethereum Foundation, which cut 54 jobs—about 20% of its workforce—in June and reorganized its teams into five divisions. The Foundation said the cuts were necessary to focus on work only it can perform.
Focus on confidential finance
EthSystems said it will offer bespoke consulting and build privacy systems using zero-knowledge cryptography, which allows transactions to be verified without revealing underlying data. "The business model is simple: bespoke consulting, focused on solving the hardest blockers for institutional adoption," the team wrote. The company will also continue publishing protocol specifications and contributing to open-source projects. While still at the Foundation, the founders held hundreds of discussions with central banks, regulators, and financial institutions, working on private bonds, confidential stablecoin transfers, and cross-chain settlements.
Growing network of independent groups
EthSystems joins Ethereum Institutional and EthLabs as independent organizations backed by Bitmine, SharpLink, and Lubin that have emerged from the Foundation. EthLabs is expected to handle major protocol research and development, while Ethereum Institutional acts as a neutral contact point for financial firms building on Ethereum. Lubin previously predicted at least three such organizations would form as the Foundation concentrates on censorship resistance, privacy, and security. Despite the changes, the Foundation's protocol division still oversees Ethereum's core technology, and developers continue work on the Glamsterdam upgrade, which includes proposed changes to block construction and network performance.