Ethereum (ETH) Is Navigating Its Most Turbulent Waters Since The Merge — Leadership Upheaval, Technical Failures, and Market Meltdown Converging Simultaneously.

Yes, we know. Not a very happy Saturday to kick-off the weekend. Bitcoin has been giving y'all nightmares (if at all you are getting any sleep) with its dramatic slides.

Yes, we know. Not a very happy Saturday to kick-off the weekend. Bitcoin has been giving y’all nightmares (if at all you are getting any sleep) with its dramatic slides.

We thought of taking a break today and talk about its younger sibling - Ethereum.

The second largest cryptocurrency, and a dramatic parallel journey. Today’s deep-dive will feel like watching three different disaster movies playing simultaneously on the same screen.

First, there is Ethereum Foundation's (EF) leader stepping aside amid community backlash; then the developers frantically troubleshooting a failed upgrade; and finally $340 million in leveraged positions teetering on the edge of liquidation – all while ETH's price has nosedived ′50% in three months.

In today's Wormhole, we examine whether this represents a fundamental shift in Ethereum's trajectory or simply another challenge for the resilient network to overcome.

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Ethereum is navigating its most turbulent waters since The Merge — a leadership upheaval, technical failures, and market meltdown converging simultaneously.

After a nearly 50% decline in three months, visibly rendering several crypto traders’ dreams in vivid detail, Ethereum has lost almost half of its market cap. Earlier this week, the second-largest cryptocurrency briefly fell below $2,100, a level not seen since December 2023.

Unlike other cryptocurrencies, however, ETH’s struggles have been driven by internal fractures that have become impossible to ignore. Aya Miyaguchi, the Executive Director of Ethereum Foundation (EF), is transitioning to the newly created role of President amid criticism from the community over her leadership style and handling of the Foundation.

Meanwhile, developers are scrambling to rectify the Pectra upgrade failure on the Holesky testnet, and several whales have been observed offloading their ETH holdings after a nearly four-month accumulation that saw them increase their collective tokens from 1,000 to 5,828.

Finally, the price downturn has brought several leveraged positions into liquidation territory, threatening a chaotic scenario.

With so much happening at once, it feels like three different crypto calamities are playing out simultaneously on the same screen. But is this the beginning of the end for the smart contract pioneer, or just another Tuesday in yet another uneventful year for Ethereum?

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The Ethereum community was met with a surprising announcement this Tuesday as Executive Director Aya Miyaguchi announced she would be “stepping up” to the newly created role of President.

“These past few weeks have illuminated something profound about Ethereum. This new opportunity will allow me to continue supporting EF’s institutional relationships, and to expand the degree to which we can share the vision and culture of the Foundation more broadly,” Miyaguchi said in a statement.

She added that the transition had been in planning stages for over a year and was part of a natural progression within the Foundation.

However, reading between the lines suggests otherwise.

Calls for Miyaguchi’s removal grew increasingly vocal in January after she appeared to reject a culture of competition and winning in a WIRED interview, especially as Ethereum was losing ground to rival blockchains. Critics argued her leadership lacked the competitive edge needed in today’s crypto landscape.

The backlash grew heated, with some community members engaging in harassment towards Miyaguchi and her family, leading to co-founder Vitalik Buterin having to intervene.

Buterin announced that Miyaguchi had also been subjected to death threats, and he was forced to step in and assert that any leadership changes remained his decision alone.

He added that he was working on revamping the Foundation’s structure to be more responsive to feedback and ensure a smoother transition.

But by that point, many community members had already rallied behind former EF researcher Danny Ryan, who led the successful transition to proof-of-state, as the ideal replacement.

This leadership turmoil comes at a vulnerable moment for Ethereum, with its price performance lagging behind competitors and development milestones facing delays.

The Foundation’s structure itself has drawn criticism for its lack of transparency. Buterin promised a revamped leadership structure soon, but details remain scarce, creating a governance vacuum precisely when decisive