"Crypto Goes Mainstream"...Ethereum Founder Shares His Vision for Ethereum

Korea Blockchain Week (KBW) 2026

"Ether Has Become a Category Like Bitcoin"

"Network Throughput Will Gradually Increase"

"Ethereum is now becoming a category of its own, just like Bitcoin. As the crypto world is becoming mainstream and financial institutions are joining in, many systems are being built based on Ethereum."

Joseph Lubin, co-founder of Ethereum and founder of Consensys, stated this at the Asia's largest blockchain conference, "Korea Blockchain Week (KBW) 2026," held at Grand Walkerhill Seoul in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul on the 30th. He commented, "Ethereum technology is growing in scale and its usability is expanding." Consensys is an Ethereum infrastructure company that provides MetaMask, the world's largest self-custody virtual asset wallet.

Joseph Lubin, co-founder of Ethereum and founder of Consensys, is speaking at the Asia's largest blockchain conference, 'Korea Blockchain Week (KBW) 2026,' held on the 30th at Grand Walkerhill Seoul in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul. Photo by Seung Wook Park

He presented Ethereum's ongoing technological scalability and his vision for the future. He said, "Ethereum has proven its security and reliability over the past 11 years without a single interruption—making it one of the very few platforms to do so." He added, "After recently doubling network throughput, further increases by three times are expected, and within five years, as it reaches web scale, capacity will expand even more."

Lubin identified regulatory clarity in the United States as a key factor behind Ethereum's expansion. He said, "Currently, the U.S. government is allowing regulations that enable all the previously suppressed institutional demand to be met." He continued, "We have obtained regulatory clarity from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and there is now a sense of urgency that those not transitioning on-chain will be left behind." He added, "Recently, price determinations for silver and oil were made on Hyperliquid. Seeing this, a growing awareness has emerged among institutions and individuals that the market needs to operate 24/7, 365 days a year."

He also emphasized the significance of self-custody. Lubin stated, "Everything starts with self-custody. As soon as you self-custody, you earn more than 6% interest, and gain full authority and control over your assets, with the ability to withdraw anytime." He explained, "With the MetaMask Card, you can purchase tokens with stablecoins or use the card at 150 payment locations across the global Mastercard network."

Lubin explained that advances in these technologies prompted the decision to separate MetaMask and Consensys. He said, "The Ethereum infrastructure we are building is diverging into three focus areas: retail wallets, protocols, and institutional services." He continued, "MetaMask and Consensys have different priorities, so as we expand further, it is only natural to split up. Each should focus on its own strengths."

He also highly evaluated Korea's unique position in the global market. Lubin stated, "Korea serves as an 'anchor country' in the global blockchain ecosystem in terms of retail investors, liquidity, and an active community." He continued, "According to research conducted with local partners such as Tiger Research, MetaMask ranks overwhelmingly No. 1 in trustworthiness in the Korean market."

He added, "After COVID-19, there was a global decline in trust and positive energy. However, as sound regulation is established and with the convergence of artificial intelligence (AI) and virtual assets, new opportunities are arising." He advised, "When Korea's cultural energy, such as K-content, combines with decentralized protocols and AI agents, it will become a key driving force for the next wave of crypto."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.