Aave DAO concluded a binding on-chain vote in early April, approving a $25 million funding package for Aave Labs with roughly 75% support. The deal consists of $25 million in aEthLidoGHO stablecoins and 75,000 AAVE tokens, aimed at powering ongoing development under the protocol's treasury-led model.
Staged stablecoin release, unused funds returned
Stablecoins will be distributed in three tranches over 12 months: an initial $5 million immediately, another $5 million within six months, and the remaining $15 million within 12 months. Any capital left unused after the cycle must be returned to the DAO treasury.
The 75,000 AAVE tokens follow a 48-month linear vesting schedule. This structure ties capital deployment to execution milestones, preventing premature dilution.
Vote tally: 522,780 for vs 175,310 against
Final vote counts show 522,780 AAVE in favor and 175,310 against. Despite the majority, notable dissent came from the Aave Chan Initiative, which cast 166,200 AAVE votes opposing the plan. Other institutional and individual holders split across both sides.
On-chain execution began immediately after the vote, with funds scheduled to transfer to an address controlled by Aave Labs, moving the decision from governance approval into active funding.
First major allocation under 'Aave Will Win'
This grant is the first substantial deployment under the 'Aave Will Win' framework. Under this model, revenue from Aave products flows into the DAO treasury, which then redistributes capital for development and ecosystem growth. However, this vote only covers core funding; separate proposals will address growth and product-specific grants, allowing tokenholders to vet each initiative independently.
Founder Stani Kulechov called the framework a key milestone for the protocol. Earlier governance debates—including a failed proposal over brand control—shaped the current structure.