Share this article
Evgeny Gaevoy, CEO of Wintermute, said that if Ethereum fails in the future, it will not be due to technical shortcomings compared to competitors like Solana. Instead, the central issue is the contradiction in Ethereum's leadership.
“If ETH fails in the future, (it) will not be because 'Solana is faster', it will be because the 'elite' (ETH) is still caught in a massive contradiction,” Gaevoy stated in a recent mail in X.
His comments come in response to the controversy that erupted after Vitalik Buterin's criticism of celebrity memecoins. According to Buterin, projects should aim to deliver social value and leave participants happy, rather than focusing on enriching celebrities and early investors.
Buterin's stance drew a harsh rebuke from hip-hop artist Iggy Azalea, who recently launched her own memecoin, MOTHER. She posted a meme of her that showed her holding a baby that looked like Buterin.
Azalea's photo prompted Uniswap Labs co-founder Hayden Adams to defend Buterin's role.
He criticized Azalea for downplaying Buterin's contributions to the crypto community, expressing his disappointment that instead of reacting positively and using the profits to support social causes, the singer chose to mock Buterin.
There are no problems with memecoins or celebcoins – I think memetic attention has value and it's great to create markets for it.
That said, the underlying purpose and value of technology goes far beyond financial games. And the best builders in the sector are motivated by positive social networks… https://t.co/FQhawNl7GP
— hayden.eth 🦄 (@haydenzadams) June 6, 2024
That's when Wintermute's CEO jumped into the debate and criticized Ethereum's leadership. He argued that Ethereum leaders are trying to create a capitalist blockchain system while also addressing social issues, a stance he sees as inherently contradictory.
“You are either building capitalism or planned socialism. “Sorry, you really (can’t) have it both ways,” Gaevoy added.
Gaevoy's comments sparked controversy among crypto members. Many disagreed with his point of view, saying that being against celebrity memecoins is not equivalent to building a socialist system.
I'm not sure how Hayden and Vitalik saying that they don't like certain trends means that they are against capitalism (or that they are no longer involved in building capitalist systems).
They both have a certain vision of cryptocurrencies, in terms of the types of things that people will build and what people…
— Mike van Rossum (@mikevanrossum) June 6, 2024
Excuse me, but in what way are Vitalik or Hayden building socialism?
Be against obvious pulls! = build socialism
– DeFi made here (@DeFi_Made_Here) June 6, 2024
In response to these disagreements, Gaevoy said it all comes down to the underlying principle.
According to him, if capitalism is the foundation, it is beneficial to integrate features to mitigate its negative impacts. However, if the main goal is “social justice” or creating “only good things,” capitalism should not be an afterthought.
For me it is the main guiding principle. If your key guiding principle is capitalism and then you take additional steps to make it less harmful, I'm all for it.
If your guiding principle is, I don't know, “social justice” or “only good things should be built” and then you attach it…
— eager cynic (@EvgenyGaevoy) June 6, 2024
Share this article
Leave feedback about this