- Aave DAO is voting on a new conflict-of-interest policy requiring funded recipients to disclose their status and abstain from conflicted votes.
- The proposal’s enforcement, which would subjectively invalidate conflicted votes, is criticized by Aave Labs employees as destabilizing.
- A top delegate says the rule is a necessary patch against what he calls a “slow motion coup” within the protocol.
- Voting began Tuesday, with the outcome narrowly favoring passage in early tallies.
A contentious conflict-of-interest proposal has ignited fresh debate at Aave DAO, highlighting the ongoing power struggle between the decentralized collective and its founding development team, Aave Labs. Tensions have simmered while members await a revenue-sharing plan from Labs CEO Stani Kulechov, but the new governance vote reveals a deep rift. The policy, proposed by the influential Aave Chan Initiative, mandates disclosure and voting abstention for funded parties.
However, enforcement relies on community pressure to exclude conflicted votes from official tallies. Critics from Aave Labs argue this creates a chaotic, parallel governance system. A pseudonymous employee called Simo wrote that it leaves “no rules, no finality, and no clear authority.” Consequently, they contend only disengaged small holders would decide major issues.
Kulechov later called the topic important but the specific framework “poorly written in all respects.” He stated he would vote no in hopes of a more reasonable policy. Meanwhile, ACI head Marc Zeller defended the urgent measure. He argued it was needed to mitigate the protocol’s current “slow motion coup.” The snapshot vote began Tuesday and remains extremely close.
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