Aave criticized for rushing DAO vote on brand assets

Aave is facing pushback after a proposal on ownership of its brand assets was advanced to a Snapshot vote following several days of forum debate.

The measure asks AAVE token holders whether control of domains, social media handles, naming rights, and related intellectual property should be transferred to a legal entity overseen by the DAO.

Founder Stani Kulechov announced the escalation, arguing that the community wanted a decision. “We realize the community is very interested in a path forward and is ready to make a decision,” he wrote. He later added that discussion had run for five days, that many comments were posted, and that the vote meets requirements. “People are tired of this discussion and getting into a vote is the best way to resolve, this is governance end of the day,” he added.

Aave is a large decentralized finance lending protocol. Governance rests with AAVE token holders through on-chain votes and off-chain tools such as Snapshot.

Former Aave Labs chief technology officer Ernesto Boado, listed as the proposal’s author, objected that the vote was moved without his knowledge. “This is not, in ethos, my proposal,” he posted on X, noting he would not have approved a vote while discussion was active and writing that the escalation “breaks the code of trust” in the community.

Marc Zeller, who leads the Aave Chan Initiative, argued that the item was “unilaterally escalated” despite unresolved questions from delegates and token holders. In a public statement, he warned that pushing the vote during the holiday period limits the ability of large stakeholders to mobilize or redelegate voting power. 

“What started as a push for clarity and a more fair relationship between token holders and the current stewards”, – he wrote “…is now turning into a hostile takeover attempt by Labs,”.

Kulechov rejected that view, maintaining that the proposal had been discussed sufficiently and that a vote is the appropriate forum to settle the matter. He added that the process follows governance rules.

The dispute concerns “soft” assets and does not cover protocol code or the treasury. Community members noted that control over escalation, information flow, and timing can influence outcomes regardless of subject matter.

As we covered previously, Aave Labs secured authorization in the European Union under MiCA for Push Virtual Assets Ireland Limited, its fiat bridge subsidiary, allowing passported access across the EEA.

The firm said it will provide regulated on- and off-ramps for euros into stablecoins integrated across its products, with conversion fees set at zero for GHO and other supported stablecoins. Aave selected Ireland as its EU hub, joining other MiCA-approved companies able to market uniform services across 30 EEA countries under a single license.