Celo Core Co. has published a governance proposal on the Celo Forum to transfer 160 million CELO tokens from the protocol’s unallocated treasury to Opera, marking a shift from recurring grant-based funding to a long-term, incentive-aligned strategic partnership.
Proposal Details and Token Allocation
The one-time allocation would be deposited into an Opera-controlled Safe multisig wallet with a three-year lock-up period through Q3 2029. Based on a 30-day average price of approximately $0.0771, the 160 million CELO is valued at roughly $12.3 million. However, the proposal emphasizes long-term alignment over short-term dollar value.
Under the plan, Opera would transition from a distribution partner into a full network stakeholder, committing to hold CELO as a reserve asset while continuing to develop its Minipay ecosystem and broader on-chain infrastructure. To mitigate governance concerns, Opera’s voting power would be capped at 10% of total staked CELO, rising only in protocol emergencies.
Background and Minipay Achievements
Collaboration between Celo and Opera dates back to 2021 when stablecoin integrations began. The partnership accelerated with the launch of Minipay in 2023—a self-custodial wallet focused on mobile-first payments and real-world use cases. According to the proposal, Minipay now boasts over 13 million activated wallets, hundreds of millions of transactions, and operations in more than 60 countries, driving a significant share of Celo’s on-chain activity.
Celo Core Co. argued that the existing quarterly grant model was inefficient, causing governance fatigue and limiting long-term planning. The new approach replaces repeated funding requests with a single allocation tied to performance metrics, including user growth, Mini App adoption, transaction volume, stablecoin flows, and geographic expansion in Latin America, Southeast Asia, and Africa—regions where Celo targets real-world financial use cases.
Impact on the Celo Network
The 160 million CELO represents approximately 16% of Celo’s maximum supply and over a quarter of its circulating tokens. If approved, Opera would become one of the largest stakeholders on the network. The announcement triggered a price increase of over 2.5% in CELO, reflecting initial market optimism.
The proposal is currently in the discussion phase and requires community approval through Celo’s on-chain governance process before any transfer is executed. This would be one of the largest governance actions in Celo’s history and signals a broader trend in blockchain ecosystems moving from early-stage grants to deeper, equity-like partnerships that align incentives between protocols and major distribution channels.
Opera’s Future Plans
Opera has indicated plans to further expand Minipay’s functionality, including fiat onramps, bridging, Mini Apps, and potential integrations such as crypto-linked payment cards, while leveraging its broader browser user base for distribution. The partnership will also continue to integrate stablecoins and gold-backed tokens like Tether Gold to serve emerging market users.