Ethereum’s co-founder, Vitalik Buterin, recently announced a privacy roadmap for the Ethereum network to enhance user safety and anonymity. The plan involves implementing more privacy features at the wallet, application, and network levels. Buterin suggested integrating privacy protocols like Railgun and Privacy Pools into wallets to hide transaction details and ensure user privacy. He also emphasized the importance of on-chain payment privacy, partial anonymization of on-chain activity within applications, and network-level anonymization for reads to the chain.
In addition to the privacy roadmap, Ethereum has upcoming upgrades in the pipeline. The Pectra upgrade, currently under testnet, aims to streamline staking, enhance privacy, and improve user experience. Following Pectra, the Fusaka upgrade is scheduled to be implemented next, with the goal of enabling cheaper and faster transactions for layer 2 solutions. These upgrades are intended to allow Ethereum to compete with faster alternative blockchains like Solana. However, despite the privacy update and planned upgrades, there has not been a significant increase in speculative trading interest in ETH.
According to Coinglass, Ethereum’s Open Interest (OI) rates have decreased by 1.5% in the last 24 hours, with a 50% drop from over $31 billion to $16 billion since 2025. This decline in OI indicates muted demand in the derivatives market and an overall bearish sentiment towards ETH. Despite this, the altcoin is currently valued at $1.5k and has formed a bullish RSI divergence on the 12-hour chart, which could potentially lead to an upward price reversal. However, the outcome remains uncertain amidst ongoing macroeconomic uncertainty.
Overall, Vitalik Buterin’s privacy roadmap for Ethereum and the upcoming network upgrades highlight the platform’s commitment to improving user privacy and enhancing the overall user experience. While these developments have not led to a significant increase in speculative trading interest in ETH, they demonstrate Ethereum’s dedication to staying competitive in the rapidly evolving blockchain ecosystem. As the network continues to evolve and implement new features, the future of Ethereum remains promising, with potential for growth and innovation in the years to come.
