[1IP 100] Recognized Delegate Program Renewal

Simple Summary

This proposal seeks to renew the 1-inch Recognised Delegates Program (RDP) for another term, incorporating updated performance requirements, revised compensation tiers, stricter participation metrics, and a position cap on funded delegates.

Abstract

The Recognised Delegates Program was established to incentivise active participation and professionalise 1inch DAO governance. Building on the previous term's success, this proposal suggests renewing the Recognised Delegates Program (RDP) for 12 months and funding it with $220,000 USD. This is a reduction from the previous budget while improving performance standards for delegates. This renewal also formalises evaluation through the OPS Working Group / Operations Multi-sig, introduces an explicit 5-position funded-delegate cap, and adds conflict-of-interest disclosure requirements.

Motivation

The Recognised Delegates Program, proposed three years ago, has successfully incentivised high-quality delegates to contribute to the governance of the 1inch DAO and attracted new participants. Currently, five delegates with professional governance experience participate in 1inch DAO. Based on feedback from the previous cycle, we have included additional performance requirements for delegates to remain in specific tiers. We believe that proceeding with this updated version will continue to drive positive change and decentralisation within the 1inch DAO.

Specification & Criteria

A Recognised Delegate is an elected, paid position held by reputable, diligent, and qualified 1inch DAO members who work closely with the team and contribute to the growth and sustainability of the 1inch DAO.

Recognised delegates fall into three categories, called "Tiers," based on their performance. Regardless of the tier, as long as a delegate fulfils the responsibilities outlined below and is accepted via a Snapshot vote, they shall be considered a "Recognised Delegate."

Responsibilities:

• Read, understand, and provide feedback on governance forum posts.

• Always vote in the best interests of the DAO and the community over personal interests.

• Actively vote on governance proposals and, when relevant, explain the reasoning behind each vote.

• Understand the 1inch Network, its key metrics, and the overall ecosystem.

• Publicly disclose any affiliation with entities that have business relationships with the 1inch Network or that may benefit from 1inch governance decisions. Recuse from voting on proposals materially affecting affiliated entities. Disclosures are published in the delegate's communication thread and updated within 14 days of any material change.

Operations Multi-sig

Program funds are administered through the existing 1inch DAO Operations Multi-sig at eth:0x45e84e10e8E85c583C002A40007D10629EF80fAF --- a long-standing 3-of-4 multisig functionally identical to the OPS Working Group, documented in the official 1inchDAO docs.

Signers:

• DAOplomats (DAOplomats.pod.xyz)

• Anode, formerly StableLab (0xea172676E4105e92Cc52DBf45fD93b274eC96676)

• Jordan, 1inch Foundation (roundelephant.eth)

• Belac, 1inch Foundation

Quorum: 3 of 4. Because two signers (Jordan, Belac) are 1inch Foundation representatives with no compensation tied to this program, the quorum requirement structurally prevents compensated delegates from self-approving evaluations or compensation adjustments.

Compensation

This program aims to attract and retain entities and individuals acting as governance specialists. Compensation is based on the following performance tiers:

Delegate Tier	Monthly Compensation
Tier 1	100
Tier 2	1000
Tier 3	4000

Eligibility & Tier Assignment

Tier placement is determined by a points-based scoring system evaluated across the following five metrics:

Metric	Criteria	Points
Governance Calls	Active	2
	Irregular	1
	Inactive	0
Working Group Involvement	Yes (member of one or more)	2
	No	0
Product / Proposal Delivery	Yes	2
	No	0
Trailing 12 month snapshot participation	90%+	3
	80%	2
	70%	1
Delegation Threshold (Unicorn Power)	500000+UP	4
	100000+UP	2
	10000+UP	1

Maximum possible score: 13 points

Tier Thresholds:

Tier assignment is based on total points accumulated across the five eligibility metrics.

• Tier 3: 10+ points

• Tier 2: 7--9 points

• Tier 1: 4--6 points

Unicorn Power is evaluated only at quarterly checkpoints, using a snapshot of UP on the last day of the review quarter. Mid-cycle fluctuations do not trigger reassessment.

Funded Delegate Cap

A maximum of 5 tier 3 delegates may be funded under this program after the first evaluation, regardless of how many qualify. If more than 5 meet eligibility thresholds in a given quarter, funding is allocated in rank order by total points, with tiebreakers in this order: (1) voting participation %, (2) Unicorn Power, (3) governance call attendance. In case there are less than 5 T3 delegates, other permutations and combinations of tiers can exist as long as the max. monthly doesn't exceed $20,000/month from the first review onwards.

Maximum theoretical exposure with 5 delegates at Tier 3: $20,000/month after the first evaluation at the end of August 2026. If the budget is exhausted before all qualifying positions fill, additional qualifiers wait until the next budget cycle. This program set a theoretical maximum sending cap of 20,000 USD per month

Quarterly Evaluation

To remain in the program, each delegate will be evaluated quarterly against the following continuing-eligibility criteria. Delegates failing to meet these standards may be moved to a lower tier or removed from the program.

Criterion	Requirement
Voting Participation	> 80% of all votes in the quarter
Rationales	Rationales posted for >80% of votes in the quarter, published on the communication thread within one week of each vote

Evaluation Process:

1. The Governance coordinator/ representative of the 1inch Foundation publishes quarterly evaluation metrics on-forum within 14 days of quarter-end (voting participation, rationales, tier scoring).

2. The operations multisig reviews the metrics and signs off on tier assignments via the 3/4 Operations Multi-sig.

3. Compensation adjustments are executed from the multi-sig only after sign-off.

The program starts 1st June 2026, and Quarterly review periods end August 30, 2026; November 30, 2026; Feb 28, 2027; and May 30, 2027.

Delegate Tiers Calculation

Delegate	Voting Participation %
Arana	100%
Anode	100%
Curia	100%
DAOplomats	100%
Franklin DAO	82.35%
PGov	17.65%

Delegate	Governance Calls	Working Groups	Product/Proposal	Unicorn Power	Voting Participation	Total	Tiers
Anode	2	2	2	4	3	13	3
Arana Digital	2	2	2	2	3	11	3
Curia	2	0	0	2	3	7	2
DAOplomats	2	2	2	4	3	13	3
Franklin DAO	0	0	0	2	2	4	1
	-

All delegates not scoring at least 4 points are not considered in the proposal

Removal Procedure

• Tier downgrade is triggered by quarterly evaluation and verified by Jordan, 1inch Foundation (roundelephant.eth). The affected delegate has 14 days from publication of evaluation metrics to respond on-forum.

• Full removal from the program requires a OPS WG sign-off (simple majority). Initiation may come from the OPS WG following quarterly evaluation, or from any DAO member via forum post citing a breach of responsibilities.

• Compensation upon removal is prorated and paid through the date of removal.

Disputes unresolved on-forum within 30 days escalate per Guidelines §5.7.

Rationale

Recognized delegates play an important role in providing third-party feedback for 1inch DAO proposals. Each delegate brings unique expertise and participates in various working groups. This renewal promotes further decentralization and community-led governance by retaining current talent and providing incentives for new delegates to increase their activity.

Considerations

• Program duration: June 1, 2026 --- May 30, 2027.

• Budget breakdown:

  • Current monthly run rate (3×T3 + 1×T2 + 1×T1) = $13,100/month for period from June to August = $39,300

  • and (5xT3)=$20,000/month from September 2026 to May 2027 = $180,000

  • $39,300 + $180,000 + 700(buffer) = $220,000

• Buffer purpose: Allows existing delegates to climb tiers and new delegates to join

Fund return: Unused funds return to the primary DAO Treasury (eth:0x7951c7ef839e26F63DA87a42C9a87986507f1c07) within 30 days of program end (June 30, 2027), executed by the Operations Multi-sig. If the program is terminated early via Snapshot, the same 30-day window applies from the termination date.

Proposal updated to incorporate the latest changes. [date=2026-05-19 timezone=Asia/Calcutta]