TLDR:

• In 2025, we delivered high-priority ecosystem tech (Hyperlane, Radix Rewards, MFA, Hyperscale, etc.) and initiated high-level talks with strategic partners. However, burning through treasury while we wait for institutional timelines or gambling on a “breakout year” is the wrong use of funds. We choose to deploy capital to drive immediate, decentralized growth and sustainable network stability.
• Radix’s ultimate strength is its decentralization. While the Foundation successfully stabilized the network through 2025, we must lean into our strengths. The "Business as Usual" model is not an optimal strategy in this market. We are proactively choosing to facilitate a responsible transition to a community-led RFP model now while we have the resources to best support it for long-term success.
• The foundation has sufficient fiat runway. As we execute this transition, our obligation is to the value of the network. Routine operating costs will be covered from existing fiat reserves and therefore, the Foundation does not plan to sell XRD.

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2025 tested the character of Radix. We faced brutal market conditions, a restructure after the abrupt transition from RDX Works, and the tragic loss of our founder, Dan. By all conventional metrics, Radix shouldn’t have been left standing.

We didn’t just stand. We built.

Before we discuss the future, it is vital to understand the state of the network today and what was achieved in 2025. The first and most obvious effort since the restructure, detailed in Dan’s 2025 priorities blog here, has been having the foundation development team ruthlessly prioritizing near term wins to drive demand. Here are some of the highlights:

• Integrated Hyperlane: We connected Radix to 150+ chains, bringing in millions of dollars in wrapped assets and creating permissionless routes to drive liquidity. This also enabled permissionless eXRD<>XRD conversions following the Instabridge shutdown.
• Expanded Access: Using Hyperlane, we expanded eXRD to Base to enable XRD trading on Coinbase DEX, significantly improving access. 
• Governance MVP: Launched the consultation dApp, establishing a reusable blueprint for community input on critical decisions.
• Radix Rewards: This campaign drove a significant uptick in on-chain activity, such as doubling weekly transactions and DEX volume. Post-launch efforts focused on UX improvements and the distribution method for Season 1.
• Revived Partnerships: We reactivated key collaborations, such as the idOS proof-of-personhood concept, demonstrating unique features of the Radix stack.
• Wallet Wins & Security: Delivered highly requested features (in-app directory, Arculus support, dark mode) and re-launched work on Multi-factor authentication and recovery (now with Phase 2 on Stokenet), allowing users to update security shields directly in the wallet.
• Hyperscale: Work resumed progress on Dan’s architectural vision. We hit end-of-year milestones of over 300k TPS on the main Hyperscale branch, and supported community-led Rust implementations.
• Operational Efficiency: When RDX Works abruptly ceased work on Radix, the Foundation immediately stepped in to temporarily create a small lean inhouse dev team that are maintaining core systems for existing and new products with around 10% of the resources allocated prior to the restructure.

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Beyond the code, our focus in Q3/4 shifted to the macro endgame: winning the adoption breakthrough.

2025 confirmed the race to own the financial rails of the 21st century is officially on. The land-grab for Asset, Application, and Infrastructure accelerated, yet the incumbents are faltering: EVMs are insecure, L2s are fragmented & expose bridge risks, and “corporate-chains” bring significant competition & regulatory risks. 

During Q3/4, we focused on this realization by entering into discussion with Fintech, Web3 and TradFi partners capable of driving mass-market access. These discussions confirmed that the Radix stack is a highly attractive alternative to the status quo. Macro conditions have lengthened the timelines or cooled appetite for potential partnerships, however, the groundwork for these strategic opportunities has been laid.

2026: Alignment & Efficiency

There is much to be positive about for 2026. We are wrapping up MFA Phase 3 to be ready for mainnet launch, and completing updates to Scrypto/RET for newer Rust versions. 

But resilience is just the baseline. The question for 2026 is: "How do we position Radix for long-term success?"

This brings us to a hard truth about the mechanics of a Foundation.

Operating a centralized company to "manage" a decentralized network requires a burn rate of Fiat currency. We need Fiat to pay for cloud services, legal fees, custody, insurances, salaries, and administration to name but a few. However, the Foundation’s primary asset is XRD.

The Foundation has sufficient fiat runway to operate. However, a centralized corporate structure cannot operate in perpetuity without eventually needing to liquidate XRD to cover these fiat costs and maintain a healthy runway.

We could take the easy, bureaucratic choice of going into 2026 continuing business as usual, seeking a strategic partnership to unlock the exposure the ecosystem and technology deserves. Effectively waiting for a “breakout year” as the runway narrows.

But nobody involved with the Foundation believes that is the right thing to do.

The Foundation’s objective was always to bootstrap the network, not to employ itself in perpetuity. 

Therefore, our focus for 2026 is managing an orderly transition to a decentralized approach for the functions currently undertaken by the Foundation, or responsibly phasing them out if the community prioritizes resources elsewhere. 

To be clear: critical infrastructure will NOT be discontinued without reliable alternatives in place. This is about controlled evolution, not abandonment.

The start of this process has already begun, with third-parties getting set up to run critical services such as the Gateway, ecosystem contributions to core-dev work (Hyperscale, node improvements) being supported, and continued open sourcing of code.

Next, we are inviting the larger actors in our ecosystem and capable teams outside of it to step up with a public “Request for Proposal” model. For example:

• Marketing: Do you think you can drive better ROI than our internal team? Don’t tweet about it. Pitch for the mandate.
• Business Development: Can you bring assets on-chain? Submit a proposal with clear KPIs.
• Infrastructure: We are already transitioning critical services (like the Gateway) to third-party providers, but we’re looking for more, there are relay servers, the pricing service and so on.  We’d like to hear your proposals.
• Can a consortium of validators manage network upgrades? Put together a proposal.

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Like any transition, this will happen in stages. While more details will be fleshed out with feedback, roughly, we see this happening in 3 main phases:

1. Phase 1 (Immediate): The Foundation has built the MVP consultation dApp. We’re going to be expanding this so that funding can be allocated based on non-binding community signaling. We’ll be requesting RFPs for critical activities (like running gateway endpoints, the signaling service, code maintenance and review) that we will fund if approved by consultations.
2. Phase 2 (Transitional): Community initiated RFPs can be submitted/requested and voted on, such as marketing ideas, partnerships, integrations, incentive structures/programs, etc.
3. Phase 3 (Decentralized): Full community control of both allocation and distribution of funding via on-chain governance (DAO/Multi-sig etc.) This will also include managing things like merging PRs to core codebases, social logins, websites, etc. if so desired

As this transition happens, the Radix Foundation will, at minimum, continue to operate critical services until reliable operators are in-place. Outside of contractual/legal obligations, new funding allocations will be managed via the RFP process, and processed by the foundation (once compliance requirements are met). 

A Commitment to Token Holders: As we execute this transition, our obligation is to the value of the network. Routine operating costs will be covered from existing fiat reserves, therefore, the Foundation does not plan to sell XRD to fund operations. 

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The Path Forward

This new chapter of Radix, with a focus on decentralization and community, has always been the long term goal of Dan and the Foundation; we should make ourselves unnecessary, not gamble on a “breakout year”. 

It will take significant effort. Things will certainly change to how they have historically operated.

We’re choosing to act now while we have the resources to manage a responsible transition and keep things running smoothly while it happens. However, that doesn’t mean we want to drag the process out. Our goal is to facilitate an orderly transition quickly, but not recklessly. 

Most importantly though, we’re making this a focus earlier rather than later as it needs to involve you, the token holders, community members, ecosystem builders, and partners in how the next stage of Radix could look.

Our role in 2025 was stabilizing the system. In 2026, our role is responsibly handing the network over to the only group that cares about it as much as we do: You.

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An FAQ can be found here.

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