Ethereum Foundation convenes 47 experts to launch new privacy initiative

The new initiative will unite Ethereum’s top cryptographers and engineers under a privacy framework.

The Ethereum Foundation (EF) announced the formation of a new group of 47 researchers, engineers, and cryptographers who will work together to make Ethereum’s layer 1 infrastructure more secure and private.

Analysts say this structural change demonstrates the agency’s seriousness about adding privacy features directly to the Ethereum ecosystem, moving it from a side project to a major development priority.

Extending Ethereum’s Privacy Framework

In an Oct. 8 blog post, EF noted that the “Privacy Cluster” brings together multiple ongoing projects under one umbrella, including the long-standing work of the Privacy and Extended Exploration (PSE) team.

PSE’s product portfolio already includes more than 50 open source research projects, such as Semaphore for anonymous signaling, MACI for private voting, zkEmail for secure communications, and TLSNotary for verifiable web interactions.

Igor Barinov will be in charge of the new cluster, Andy Guzman will still be in charge of PSE, and the company will focus on early-stage research and development. The organization’s goal is to make private transactions, identity verification, and institutional operations more secure and easier to use.

Some of the most important projects are Private ReadWrite, which allows users to perform private operations on the blockchain; Private Proof, for verifiable proofs without data exposure; and the Institutional Privacy Task Force (IPTF), which links regulatory compliance with on-chain functionality. Another tool that stands out is the Kohaku Wallet SDK, which adds privacy-preserving encryption for everyday use.

Just a few weeks ago, Ethereum developers detailed the Fusaka upgrade, which will be released on mainnet on December 3, saying it will increase the amount of data that can be sent and received as well as the capacity of the layer 2 chain, which is crucial for scalable privacy.

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Ethereum’s evolving security and value proposition

In its latest blog, EF insists that privacy research has been part of Ethereum’s DNA since 2018. Given the billions of dollars of value processed on the network every day, the foundation said it is important to keep personal, institutional and developer information private to maintain digital trust.

The news comes as more institutions get involved in Ethereum. Some observers believe that the success of Grayscale’s new ETH staking ETF and the growing number of companies building ETH vaults means there is now more scrutiny on Ethereum’s regulatory compliance and data protection, and that the IPTF’s work may become increasingly important in these areas.

Meanwhile, at the time of writing, the market for the world’s second-largest crypto asset is trading at nearly $4,400. Analysts believe that if current market trends continue, blockchain’s security and privacy could impact adoption and investor confidence, and its price could reach as high as $13,000.