Aave DAO has voted to provide Aave Labs with $25 million and 75,000 AAVE tokens in exchange for all future product revenue. The vote followed complaints from three long-time DAO service providers who announced their departure, criticizing the growing power of Aave Labs and a lack of accountability.
The Aave DAO passed a landmark vote on Sunday, redefining its relationship with Aave Labs. In exchange for funding, starting with a $25 million stablecoin package and 75,000 AAVE tokens, the company will direct 100% of its product revenue to the DAO treasury.
The agreement resolves a months-long argument over revenue from a swap feature on the Aave website. Following the vote, Aave founder Stani Kulechov stated that “The DAO is taking a zero-bureaucracy approach.”
Three major DAO service providers, however, announced their intention to leave ahead of the vote. Aave Chan Initiative founder Marc Zeller said their departure was due to a lack of transparency, remarking, “When we applied those same standards to the entity requesting the largest budget in DAO history, the system stopped working.”
Another provider, BGD Labs, said “Aave Labs believes that the whole Aave DAO and contributors should pivot in the direction they believe in, without sufficient consideration of existing contributors’ expertise.” Their exits highlight accusations of centralization as the $45 billion protocol competes for institutional business.
Kulechov emphasized a competitive strategy, adding “There is zero room for friction.” This stance has raised questions about whether the DAO’s governance is moving away from democratic debate. The events occur as many DeFi protocols adjust their models to attract traditional finance investors.
