Ethereum Launches Privacy Roadmap to Bring Private DeFi and Wallets by 2027

Ethereum has launched a new roadmap called “Privacy Stewards of Ethereum” that introduces a long-term plan to bring full privacy across its ecosystem. The roadmap directly answers the question: How will Ethereum handle privacy going forward?

By 2027, the Ethereum Foundation aims to provide private decentralized finance (DeFi), peer-to-peer transfers, digital wallets, and blockchain-based voting. This shift marks the evolution of the former Privacy & Scaling Explorations program into a full-scale strategy backed by funding, technical commitments, and developer engagement.

Why Privacy Stewards Matters

Privacy has been a recurring demand in the Ethereum community, especially as regulators increase financial surveillance. Many DeFi users now consider anonymity a core requirement, not an optional feature.

Ethereum’s roadmap highlights that without strong privacy guarantees, blockchain could risk becoming a surveillance tool rather than an instrument of freedom.

The Privacy Stewards initiative focuses on:

• Private peer-to-peer transfers across Ethereum’s base layer and scaling networks.
• Confidential DeFi trading that shields trader identities while ensuring verifiable transactions.
• Anonymous voting systems secured by zero-knowledge proofs.
• Secure wallets with built-in encryption features for memos and transfers.

Technical Details of the Roadmap

The Ethereum Foundation outlined clear steps for the next 3–6 months, moving beyond experimentation toward structured implementation.

Key developments include:

• PlasmaFold Layer-2 Network: A privacy-focused scaling solution enabling private transfers.
• Confidential Voting: Testing blockchain voting systems where ballots are both verifiable and anonymous.
• DeFi Privacy Pools: Shielded liquidity pools under development by protocols like Starknet and Aztec.
• RPC Data Protections: Preventing private data from being broadcast through remote procedure calls.
• Zero-Knowledge (ZK) Identity: Leveraging ZK proofs to confirm information without revealing sensitive details.

These goals rest on three pillars of the roadmap:

1. Private Writes – On-chain actions as seamless as public transactions, but with sensitive details hidden.
2. Private Reads – Users can access blockchain data without revealing their identity or purpose.
3. Private Proving – Making ZK proof generation faster and cheaper for everyday applications.

Evolution From PSE

The new roadmap rebrands the former Privacy & Scaling Explorations (PSE) program. While PSE was experimental, the Privacy Stewards initiative represents a permanent commitment to integrating privacy at every layer: protocol, infrastructure, networking, application, and wallets.

Ethereum Foundation member Sam Richards emphasized:

“Ethereum deserves to become core infrastructure for global digital commerce, identity, collaboration, and the internet of value. But this potential is impossible without private data, transactions, and identity.”

Early Adoption and Market Signals

Since the announcement on September 12, Ethereum’s test networks have recorded a 20% increase in zero-knowledge proof (ZKP) activity. This indicates that developers are already adopting privacy-focused tools.

Projects already underway include:

• Aztec Noir: A programming language for private smart contracts.
• ZK Voting Systems: Pilots like ZKorum show voting can be both anonymous and auditable.
• Wallet Upgrades: MetaMask and others are adding encrypted memos for private transfers.

Regulatory Context

Ethereum’s roadmap comes just ahead of a U.S. SEC roundtable on financial surveillance in October 2025. The timing highlights the Foundation’s intent to balance privacy with regulatory compatibility.

By focusing on verifiable cryptographic methods like ZKPs, Ethereum aims to show that privacy and compliance can coexist. Transactions can remain valid and auditable without exposing identities or balances.

Funding and Governance

To support this roadmap, the Ethereum Foundation has allocated two million ETH from its treasury for privacy research and community projects. This funding reflects Ethereum’s open governance model, where community proposals influence long-term direction.

Governance activity itself is rising, with 2025 seeing a 30% increase in developer proposals compared to the previous year.

Looking Toward 2027

Ethereum’s privacy journey is scheduled to unfold over the next two years with several milestones:

• End of 2025: Target for a native Layer-1 zkEVM integration, embedding privacy at Ethereum’s core.
• 2026: Expansion of shielded DeFi pools, projected to handle up to $10 billion in private transactions.
• 2027: Private wallets, confidential DeFi, and anonymous voting systems expected to be fully integrated.

These changes will tie Ethereum’s value directly to real protocol usage, while offering users stronger privacy guarantees.

Industry leaders, including ARK Invest’s Cathie Wood, have publicly endorsed the roadmap. Analysts suggest Ethereum’s push into privacy could influence market adoption much like earlier milestones such as Ethereum 2.0.

Why Privacy Matters for Ethereum

The Ethereum Foundation has framed privacy not as an extra feature, but as the default state of digital interaction. In their view, privacy ensures:

• Protection from financial surveillance.
• True ownership of digital identity.
• Confidence in using DeFi and Web3 without exposure.

As crypto adoption grows, privacy is becoming less about preference and more about necessity.

Conclusion

Ethereum’s Privacy Stewards roadmap sets a structured path for private transactions, voting, wallets, and DeFi by 2027. With a native zkEVM on the horizon, new funding, and active developer participation, Ethereum is committing to making privacy an integral feature of its ecosystem.

By aligning technical development, governance, and regulatory awareness, the Ethereum Foundation is laying out a direct and verifiable path toward privacy-focused blockchain infrastructure.

Resources:

1. Ethereum PSE Roadmap: https://ethereum-magicians.org/t/pse-roadmap-2025-and-beyond/25423

2. U.S. SEC roundtable on financial surveillance press release: https://www.sec.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2025-114-sec-crypto-task-force-host-roundtable-financial-surveillance-privacy

3. Ethereum Foundation introduces 'Privacy Stewards for Ethereum' and roadmap - report by CoinTelegraph: https://cointelegraph.com/news/ethereum-foundation-privacy-stewards-roadmap