Aave Labs, the core development team behind the Aave protocol, has been awarded $25 million worth of stablecoins, in addition to a token allocation of 75,000 $AAVE through its Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) as part of the ‘Aave Will Win’ framework.
The vote was passed on Saturday with almost 75% in favor. The stablecoin allocation is paid in installments over 12 months, while the 75,000 $AAVE tokens will be vested linearly over a four-year period, according to the governance dashboard.
The Aave Will Win framework aims to accelerate the growth of the protocol, with DAO funding development and Aave Labs focused on building and scaling. The stablecoins directly fund Aave Labs’ operations, while the token allocation provides an incentive for developers to help the protocol grow.
Other elements of the framework, including the growth and development grants tied to specific product launches and milestones, will have separate governance proposals.
Aave is one of the largest DeFi protocols in the industry, with a total value of more than $25 billion, according to data from DeFiLlama. The framework marks a major shift in the allocation of funding.
Most important proposal in the history of the protocol, says its founder
After the vote, Aave founder Stani Kulechov said in an X-post on Saturday that Aave Will Win is the “most important proposal in Aave history” and that it “simply passed by a landslide.”
“If you are an owner $AAVEYou own not only the economic rights of the protocol, but also the brand, the users and the integrations, he added. “This is the direction we are committed to, a multi-year journey. The foundation has been laid. Now it is time to continue building. Aave will win.”
Under the framework, which was passed on April 5, Aave Labs would transition to a DAO-funded business model, with revenue generated by Aave products, such as Aave Pro, flowing into the DAO treasury rather than being retained by Aave Labs.
The proposal also sought the ratification of Aave V4 as the long-term technical basis of the protocol and outlined plans for a new foundation to manage the Aave brand. Aave Labs would also focus exclusively on Aave-related products, with the aim of streamlining operations, accelerating development and building a more competitive offering.
“Fintechs are entering DeFi, institutions are entering the chain and regulatory clarity is emerging in certain markets, allowing us to go directly to consumers,” Aave Labs said.
“The protocols that will win in the next decade will be those that move fast, build great tools and products, and capture new markets before the competition,” it added.
Proposals have previously encountered friction
Some community members have previously raised concerns about the size of the funding package and the inclusion of 75,000 $AAVE tokens, which have voting rights, and the definition of what counts as income.
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The Aave Will Win framework passed a temperature check on March 1, and shortly thereafter a key governance delegate, the Aave Chan Initiative, announced it would end its involvement with the DAO due to concerns about governance standards and voting dynamics during the proposal process.
In January, another proposal to transfer control of Aave’s brand assets and intellectual property to the DAO failed, sparking debate within the Aave community over the protocol’s long-term direction and governance structure.
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