Ethereum Foundation Hits Glamsterdam Milestones with 200M Gas Target as Treasury Activity Intensifies

Glamsterdam Upgrade Gains Momentum with 200 Million Gas Limit Target

The Ethereum Foundation has achieved a credible post-upgrade target of a 200 million gas limit floor for the Glamsterdam hard fork, representing more than a threefold increase from the current approximately 60 million gas limit. This enhancement promises a substantial boost to network throughput and efficiency.

Glamsterdam focuses on fundamentally updating how Ethereum creates and verifies blocks, with emphasis on scaling the layer-1 chain through reorganization of transaction processing and database management. The upgrade, originally eyed for June, is now targeted for the third quarter of 2026, with devnets already live.

Protocol Leadership Transition Announced

In parallel with technical progress, the Foundation has initiated a leadership transition within its Protocol cluster. Will Corcoran, Kev Wedderburn, and developer Fredrik have been named as new leads. Long-time contributors Barnabé Monnot and Tim Beiko are stepping away from the Foundation, with Alex Stokes taking a sabbatical.

The changes signal a new chapter focused on delivering Glamsterdam, advancing Hegotà, and executing the broader Strawmap vision. Developers emphasized making Ethereum's unique features more accessible while supporting pluralistic development approaches.

Treasury Activity Draws Scrutiny: 21,270 ETH Unstaked

The Ethereum Foundation unstaked 21,270 ETH — valued at nearly $50 million — from Lido, moving the assets into the withdrawal queue. This follows earlier unstaking of approximately 17,000 ETH in late April and multiple over-the-counter sales totaling 25,000 ETH to Bitmine Immersion Technologies.

Analysts suggest the moves support operational funding needs, including protocol research, ecosystem development, and community grants. The Foundation has revised its treasury policy to increase staking participation for sustainable funding while reducing direct market sales dependency.

Ecosystem Developments: Aave Governance and Bitmine Accumulation

Aave has launched a governance vote involving roughly $71 million in disputed ETH (30,765 ETH) tied to the recent Kelp DAO exploit. The proposal follows a U.S. court order and highlights ongoing legal complexities in DeFi governance.

Meanwhile, Bitmine Immersion Technologies continues its aggressive ETH accumulation strategy, targeting ownership of 5% of Ethereum's circulating supply by late 2026. The firm has slowed its weekly purchases but plans to stake its entire holdings, projected to generate substantial annual rewards while removing supply from circulation.

Ongoing Grants and Infrastructure Focus

The Foundation continues directing resources toward core infrastructure, zero-knowledge cryptography research, validator security, and developer tooling. Recent allocations support execution clients like Geth and Erigon, consensus client upgrades, quantum-resistant solutions, and various privacy and governance initiatives.

As Ethereum navigates these technical, organizational, and financial developments, the network's evolution toward greater scalability and security remains a central priority for the ecosystem.