Consensys Splits, Renames Main Company to Focus on Tokenization

Consensys Software Inc., a company behind much of Ethereum's tooling, is splitting into two independently operated companies. The consumer wallet business, known as MetaMask, will continue under the existing company with Joe Lubin as chairman and chief executive. In contrast, the protocol and institutional infrastructure work, including Linea and Besu, will move into a newly formed company that takes the Consensys name.

The new company, which will be run by Mike Kriak as CEO and David Cunningham as president, with Lubin as executive chairman, expects to complete the separation by the end of 2026. MetaMask currently has more than 100 million downloads across roughly 190 countries and 'trillions of dollars in cumulative transaction volume.'

According to the announcement, this change is a widening of scope for MetaMask, which grew out of Consensys' protocol work into the world's most widely used self-custodial wallet. Lubin stated that today it's becoming something larger: a platform where people don't just hold their assets but manage their money in its many diverse forms and aspects.

The new company, Consensys, will focus on Ethereum and Linea protocol work, the Besu execution client, and Teku, aiming them at banks and asset managers moving into tokenization. Cunningham noted that 'financial institutions and market infrastructure are moving to always-on operations with tokenization at the core.'