Key Takeaways
- Xen Baynham-Herd, Head of Global Builders at Base, stated that he has seen no signs of frustration among developers building on Coinbase’s layer-2 network.
- Ethereum core developer Péter Szilágyi accused the Ethereum Foundation of being controlled by a “ruling elite.”
- Baynham-Herd attributed Base’s positive developer culture to its commercial framework under Coinbase.
The Head of Global Builders at Base, Xen Baynham-Herd, has said he has seen no signs of unrest among developers building on Base, distancing Coinbase’s layer-2 network from the internal tensions currently surfacing within the Ethereum Foundation.
In recent weeks, long-time Ethereum core developer Péter Szilágyi publicly criticized the Foundation’s leadership structure in a mid-2024 memo circulated to its senior team.
Ethereum Veteran Slams Network Leadership
In the document, Szilágyi accused the Foundation of being controlled by “a ruling elite who will never relinquish control,” adding that Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin maintains “complete indirect control” over the network’s direction.
“Ethereum may be decentralized, but Vitalik absolutely has complete indirect control over it,” Szilágyi wrote.
He added that Buterin’s “attention, direction of research, brainpower, donations, and investments absolutely define which projects succeed,” arguing that “the key to gray-area behavior is to convince Vitalik it’s ok-ish.”
Szilágyi, who joined the Foundation in 2015 and leads Geth (Go Ethereum), the most widely used Ethereum node client, said projects seeking Foundation support only need to “get the correct 5–10 people around Vitalik” on board.
“I Don’t See That at Base Actually”
Asked whether he saw similar frustrations among teams building on Base, Baynham-Herd said he had not observed the same issues.
“I don’t see that at Base actually,” he told CCN at ZebuLive in London on Tuesday.
“The top projects on Base I think pay competitively,” he added. “At least I’ve not heard any problems from developers building on Base projects.”
The head of builders reiterated that while Ethereum’s core contributors operate within a non-profit structure overseen by the Foundation, Base’s ecosystem, incubated by Coinbase, follows a more commercial model.
This means they offer direct revenue and growth opportunities for developers.
That distinction, Baynham-Herd suggested, may explain why Base’s developer culture has avoided similar tensions.
Kurt Robson is a London-based reporter at CCN, specialising in the fast-moving worlds of crypto and emerging technology. He began his career covering local news in Cornwall after graduating from Falmouth University with First Class Honours in Journalism. There, he cut his teeth on everything from council meetings to missing swans.
He quickly rose through the ranks to become a frontline journalist at several of the UK’s leading national newspapers. Over the years, he has interviewed musicians and celebrities, reported from courtrooms and crime scenes, and secured multiple front-page exclusives.
Following the upheaval of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kurt shifted his focus to technology journalism—just ahead of the AI boom. With a natural curiosity and a trained eye for emerging trends, he has found a new rhythm in reporting on innovation.
At CCN, Kurt's work focuses on the cutting edge of crypto, blockchain, AI, and the evolving digital world. Drawing on his background in people-first reporting and his deep interest in disruptive tech, Kurt delivers stories that are insightful, entertaining, and human-centric.
