Consensys CEO Joseph Lubin backed Ethereum treasury companies at Consensus 2026, calling the digital asset treasury model a 'pretty profound innovation.' He said well-run treasury programs could support Ethereum, DeFi, and traditional finance by creating long-term capital structures for digital assets.
Speaking with The Block’s Gareth Jenkinson, Lubin described digital asset treasuries, or DATs, as a 'valuable, powerful, important construct.' He said the model could help both crypto markets and traditional finance.
Yet, he also warned against weak imitation projects. Lubin said a 'dumb copycat DAT' built around a weak token could harm its own ecosystem.
Lubin named Strategy, BitMine, and SharpLink as serious treasury operators. He said these firms have structures built around long-term permanent capital. SharpLink holds a direct link to Lubin, who serves as its chairman. He said these organizations can absorb volatility and help grow Ether’s value over time.
At the same time, the report noted that not every permanent capital pledge has remained firm. Strategy Executive Chairman Michael Saylor said the firm 'will probably' sell some Bitcoin to fund STRC dividends. Lubin also praised BitMine’s execution under Tom Lee. He said both men recently discussed machine intelligence and decentralized protocols.
Their firms also talk often, including around the Kelp DAO exploit recovery. That effort involved Aave, LayerZero, and other major protocol groups. Consensys and Lubin personally contributed 30,000 ETH to the DeFi United initiative. The broader effort reportedly moved past $300 million.
Lubin did not frame the Kelp DAO incident as a failure for DeFi. Instead, he compared exploiters to 'self-appointed consultants' who expose weaknesses in early financial systems. Then, he turned to machine intelligence. Lubin said Ethereum could use it to build formally verifiable protocol pipelines.
These systems could mathematically prove that a protocol’s implementation matches its design. He said the process may stay messy for six to twelve months. Even so, he said software could enter a 'golden age' as machines help developers build stronger systems.
On Layer 2 development, Lubin confirmed that Consensys will contribute Linea technology to the Linux Foundation Decentralized Trust.
The same organization absorbed Consensys’s BESU execution client years ago. BESU now runs production systems at DTCC, BNY, and Citi Token Services. Lubin positioned Linea as BESU 2.0. He described it as a zero-knowledge Layer 2 built on the EVM foundation.
Linea aims to give institutions a fully EVM-compatible path into Ethereum. Lubin said this format fits systems that enterprise firms already understand. The network also works on synchronous composability. Lubin called that feature 'the holy grail' of Ethereum’s ecosystem. The feature would allow atomic transactions across several Layer 2 networks within one block. It would not require a hard fork.
Gnosis’s Ethereum Economic Zone framework also plays a role in this effort. The framework links Layer 1 and Layer 2 into one execution setting.
Read More: Consensys Challenges US SEC in Court Over Ethereum Regulations
Lubin also focused on traditional finance. He estimated global traditional financial assets at $600 trillion to $700 trillion. By comparison, he placed DeFi at only a few trillion dollars. He said Ethereum’s neutrality, track record, and security make it a natural home for stocks, Treasuries, and ETFs moving on-chain.
On quantum computing, Lubin said Ethereum’s quantum safety path already sits inside its scaling roadmap. He called it 'a nice side effect' of planned upgrades.
He also said Consensys funds StarkWare’s research on hash functions. For Bitcoin, he described the issue as more difficult. Lubin said the Bitcoin community may need a deadline to move away from vulnerable address types. He also referenced BIP-361, which targets legacy signatures exposed to quantum risks.
Asked about a Consensys IPO, Lubin stayed guarded. He said going public 'seems like a good idea' for organizations in the sector, including Consensys.
Joseph Lubin backed Ethereum treasury firms as long-term ecosystem builders while warning against weak copycat models. He also linked Ethereum’s future to Linea, DeFi recovery, machine intelligence, tokenization, and quantum safety as institutions move closer to on-chain finance.