Ethereum core developer Federico Carrone, known as "Fede's Intern" on X, has voiced serious concerns about the growing influence of venture capital firm Paradigm on Ethereum's governance and development. Carrone described this as a "relevant tail risk" to the network's future, warning that corporate priorities could distort Ethereum's founding ethos of decentralization.
His comments were in response to a post by David Hoffman, co-founder of Bankless, who highlighted the departure of Ethereum Foundation researcher Dankrad Feist to join Tempo, a new Layer 1 blockchain incubated by payments giant Stripe and backed by Paradigm. Tempo, which recently raised $500 million at a $5 billion valuation from investors like Greenoaks and Thrive Capital, is designed as a high-throughput chain for institutional adoption, focusing on stablecoin payments and bank-to-bank transfers.
Carrone emphasized that while Paradigm has contributed valuable research and open-source tools, such as the Rust-based Ethereum execution client "Reth," its profit-driven incentives may not align with Ethereum's decentralized vision. He cautioned against developing a "technical deep dependency" on a fund that strategically invests across multiple fronts, including competing projects like Tempo.
To counter this, Carrone and others launched Ethrex, an independent Rust-based execution client, as an alternative to Reth, which he views as effectively controlled by a venture-backed entity. Hoffman echoed these concerns, noting that Tempo's privately owned, compliance-first model could divert talent, liquidity, and innovation away from Ethereum, potentially consuming "as much of the pie as possible."
Paradigm, founded in 2018 by Coinbase co-founder Fred Ehrsam and former Sequoia partner Matt Huang, has not publicly responded to Carrone's remarks. The firm has a broad portfolio including stakes in Coinbase, Uniswap, and Optimism, and maintains that its work strengthens open-source infrastructure. Tempo executives have stated that their network will complement, not compete with, Ethereum, aiming to scale stablecoin payments for mainstream use.
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