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Consensys Software Inc. is splitting its consumer and institutional businesses, with the existing company rebranding as MetaMask—the brand best known for its crypto wallet—and a newly formed Consensys taking over its Ethereum protocols and institutional blockchain infrastructure, according to an announcement Wednesday.
MetaMask will be led by Consensys co-founder Joe Lubin as chairman and CEO. The new Consensys will be led by CEO Mike Kriak and President David Cunningham, with Lubin serving as executive chairman. (Disclosure: Consensys is one of several investors in Dastan, Decrypt's parent company.)
The companies will operate independently, separating MetaMask's consumer finance business from Consensys' Ethereum protocols and institutional blockchain infrastructure, with the split expected to be completed by the end of 2026.
"MetaMask grew out of that work into the world's most widely used self-custodial wallet, and 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," Lubin said in a statement. "Stepping into this role full-time is a recognition that consumer finance deserves the same focus and ambition that we've brought to building Ethereum itself."
MetaMask boasts more than 100 million downloads across roughly 190 countries and has facilitated trillions of dollars in cumulative transaction volume, according to the company.
The wallet has expanded beyond storing and trading crypto. In June, MetaMask launched Money Account, a self-custody feature that combines stablecoin yield, payments and trading in a single balance. MetaMask Senior Director of Product Johann Bornman told Decrypt at the time that the company was working toward a "neo-banking experience."
MetaMask has also pushed beyond its Ethereum roots. It added Bitcoin support in December after adding Solana, allowing users to manage BTC alongside assets on Ethereum and other supported networks.
The expansion followed the 2025 launch of MetaMask's mUSD stablecoin on Ethereum and the second-layer blockchain network Linea, with plans to use the token for payments through the MetaMask debit card.
The newly formed Consensys will continue developing Linea, its Ethereum layer-2 network, along with Besu, an Ethereum execution client used for permissioned blockchain networks, and Teku, an Ethereum consensus client. The company will focus on blockchain infrastructure for banks, asset managers, payment providers and other financial institutions.
"Going forward, the two companies will keep building the same ecosystem, just with the focus each market now demands," Lubin added.
