📰 Polygon Leadership Shakeup: Sandeep Nailwal Named Foundation CEO
In a significant pivot for one of the Ethereum ecosystem’s pioneers, Polygon co‑founder Sandeep Nailwal has officially taken the helm as CEO of the Polygon Foundation, signaling a dramatic strategic shift. This leadership change comes with a bold reorientation toward Polygon’s Proof‑of‑Stake (PoS) sidechain and away from its zkEVM rollup efforts.
🧭 What’s Changing and Why It Matters
- Leadership Restructure
Nailwal succeeds the previous co‑founder–led leadership model, following the departure of Mihailo Bjelic in May 2025. As CEO, he will increase focus on ecosystem cohesion, strategic vision, and long‑term roadmap execution. - zkEVM Is Being Phased Out
After underwhelming adoption and technical obstacles, the zkEVM mainnet beta is slated for decommissioning in 2026. The sequencer will stay active for the next 12 months to facilitate a transition. Jordi Baylina, the zkEVM lead, is leaving to found his own zero‑knowledge venture, ZisK. - AggLayer & PoS Revival
Nailwal is reviving the “zero‑to‑one” ethos that drove Polygon’s early growth and doubling down on AggLayer—a trustless cross‑chain liquidity protocol—and the PoS sidechain. The aim: reestablish Polygon as a top Web3 scaling option by boosting transaction throughput to 100,000 TPS and anchoring real‑world financial assets (RWAs) onchain. - Regulatory Clarity & Market Momentum
With the U.S. SEC concluding its inquiry into MATIC’s status as a security, Polygon is seeing renewed interest from institutional traders and market‑makers—signaling optimism for liquidity and on‑exchange depth.
🔍 Strategic Implications & Outlook
| Area | What’s Shifting | Implication |
|---|---|---|
| Tech & Roadmap | Sunset of zkEVM and focus on PoS AggLayer roadmap | Simplifies development and could speed adoption |
| Market Presence | Push for RWAs and 100k TPS throughput | Likely to attract institutional and enterprise integration |
| Leadership | Nailwal leading alone post‑founder exits | Centralized vision could improve execution |
- Tech Realignment – By phasing out zkEVM, Polygon is recalibrating toward technologies with stronger traction, acknowledging the dominance of Optimism, Arbitrum, and others.
- AggLayer & RWAs – Tapping into tokenized real‑world finance could position Polygon as a go‑to platform for minting and trading tokenized assets from BlackRock, Apollo, and others.
- Foundation-Led Focus – A founder‑driven leadership model is temporal yet bold—moving away from committee-driven inertia and hoping for sharper execution.
💬 What Sandeep Nailwal Says
- He’s embracing a “zero‑to‑one” mindset, returning to Polygon’s rapid innovation and community‑driven roots.
- Nailwal emphasized “greater value to POL stakers” and pledged more clarity across Polygon’s offerings.
- He hinted that lifting of SEC pressure will attract institutional liquidity, reinforcing POL’s market resilience .
🧩 Final Thoughts
This shakeup highlights Polygon’s refocus on its most successful elements. With Nailwal in charge, zkEVM deprecated, and AggLayer + PoS front and center, Polygon aims to regain ground in the competitive Layer‑2 space. The upcoming months—particularly the PoS roadmap rollout and strategic partnerships—will determine if this pivot can truly reignite Polygon’s dominance.