VIP15 - veDAO + Frens

Simple Summary

Extend our mission of delivering maximum long-term value for the veDAO community by broadening our mandate to include deploying resources towards new potential partnerships.

Abstract

The veDAO Team will begin the process of collaborating with potential partners to develop strategies that expand the ve(3,3) framework. Steps include preserving treasury flexibility for new opportunities while continuing to pursue optimal value generation on Solidly, translating learnings from the veDAO community to new partners, identifying and recruiting talent to participate in future project initiatives, and identifying promising projects in which to invest veDAO treasury resources.

Motivation

veDAO launched with the dual purpose of 1) giving ordinary people an opportunity to own and control a portion of Solidly and 2) driving maximum long-term value to the veDAO community. In the midst of the challenging first few weeks of Solidly, the veDAO Team has successfully grown our control of Solidly from our initial 5% veNFT allocation to over 8% in the last epoch.

Through the course of this work, veDAO has developed some of the deepest subject matter expertise on both Solidly and ve(3,3), meticulously taking note of the dynamics within Solidly and its broader ecosystem. This expertise has resulted in the veDAO team becoming a sought-after reference for teams seeking to expand the ve(3,3) vision.

To this point, veDAO has restricted itself to the informal advising of those who reach out, in order to maintain our focus on our core mission. In the course of these conversations, though, it has become increasingly clear that the opportunity around ve(3,3) is much larger than simply maximizing vote share on Solidly.

We thus propose VIP-15 to enable veDAO to expand our mandate to capitalize on these opportunities.

The Plan

While we cannot yet reveal the teams we have been talking with, as a DAO we require the community’s support to expand our mandate. As such, we will lay out the high-level objectives of what we’re proposing so we can begin executing against them, and we will follow up with a more detailed VIP once any formal partnerships can be voted on.

In choosing potential partners, we will prioritize the following values...

• Value generation for veDAO token holders
• Supporting a foundational public good for further DeFi protocol development
• Maximization of ecosystem cooperation and partnership
• Genuine, concrete differentiation and enduring utility of Solidly protocol

What might this look like?

• veDAO multisig continuing to manage DAO treasury
• veDAO taking on a meaningful partnership in the design and development of a new or existing project
• veDAO’s current assets remaining under governance
• veDAO’s liquid assets being used to maximize growth opportunities with a partner protocol
• veDAO continuing to employ treasury to acquire more Solidly vote share through direct partnership

What could be in it for veDAO?

• veDAO could potentially receive funding from partners for bootstrap expenses
• veDAO team potentially receives a portion of a protocol’s token allocation
• veDAO treasury potentially receives a veNFT representing a significant portion of all veNFT emissions

What could be in it for DAO Members?

• Substantial growth in the DAO treasury and assets
• Deeper exposure to emerging ve(3,3) opportunities
• Diversified revenue streams available to the DAO
• More options for value sharing with DAO members

What comes next?

If approved on a consensus vote and validated through a snapshot vote, the veDAO Team will immediately begin the process of executing against this plan, including...

• Fully engaging with potential partners around protocol details including tokenomics, emissions, distribution, and strategic acquisitions
• Optimizing treasury management to support both Solidly control and new opportunities with developing protocols
• Developing a robust VIP detailing DAO plans for specific partners and launching for a community vote

Rationale

Since the beginning, veDAO has been focused on driving long-term value to the veDAO community. This started through our securing of a veNFT representing 5% of Solidly. It then expanded to represent our efforts to grow that share of control to 8% while supporting the broader ecosystem.

This will allow us to build on our expertise of the ve(3,3) model and participate in the exciting innovation building on Andre’s vision. By doing so, not only will we ensure more people have the opportunity to own a piece of ve(3,3), but that veDAO members receive the long-term value we’ve strived to create.