Curve Founder Wants 21M CRV to Fund Development, Proposal Raises Questions

• Curve Founder Michael Egorov has requested a substantial portion of the Community Fund to support development.
• The proposal marks a departure from Curve DAO’s usual operations.
• For most DAO members, the proposal has raised more questions than answers.

A recurring challenge for crypto projects is how to fund development and, better yet, do so sustainably. In the latest instance highlighting this challenge, the Curve DAO , the entity governing the decentralized lending protocol Curve Finance, faces a proposal from Curve Founder Michael Egorov requesting funding for his firm to continue research and development efforts. For most DAO members, the proposal has raised more questions than answers.

Curve’s Egorov Seeks Extended Runway

Curve Founder Michael Egorov is seeking funding for his company, Swiss Stake AG. Swiss Stake AG has been one of Curve’s primary contributors and has been credited with developing most of the protocol’s key components, like stable swap, the DAO’s governance system, and the soft liquidation mechanism LLAMMA. Egorov submitted a proposal requesting funding for the firm on Monday, August 19, in “a cultural shift” for the Curve DAO.

"Curve DAO acts until now as a parametric DAO, for funding it has only been used twice, to fund the grants council. We are aware that this proposal is a cultural shift and are seeking broad support to underpin its legitimacy," Egorov wrote.

Specifically, Egorov is requesting 21 million CRV worth approximately $6.3 million at current rates to help Swiss Stake maintain and add to its estimated 25-person staff and fund software research and development efforts for a year, promising a bi-annual report of the spending and also promising to roll over any unused funds to the following year. 

Egorov is requesting this sum from Curve’s Community Fund, which currently holds 47.5 million CRV or about $14.3 million at current rates.

According to the Curve founder, Swiss Stake AG has run on a CRV allocation received in August 2020, or four years ago, citing a lack of other substantial revenue sources.

Unsurprisingly, Egorov’s proposal has received a flurry of reactions from community members, who, despite appreciating Swiss Stake’s efforts, have pointed out what is to them a deal-breaking flaw.

No Details

For many users, the proposal’s lack of a clear roadmap highlighting specific expenditures, milestones, and timelines meant that there was just not enough information to go on to release the requested funds.

"I totally understand the need, and the Swiss Stake AG deserves it! However, it would be amazing if you could share a product/strategy roadmap + cost breakdown like Aave does. More transparency is always appreciated!," one user commented in the forum .

This user was not alone, as a self-acclaimed CRV whale wrote: 

"Without seeing a clear enough roadmap and detailed fund expenditure, I will use 30 million+ CRV to vote against it."

Beyond gripes over the proposal’s lack of details, others questioned its sustainability, noting that the requested sum was already nearly half the Community Fund.

On the Flipside 

• At the time of writing, the proposal is not yet up for voting.
• Egorov has attributed the lack of details in the proposal to legal advice.

Why This Matters

To keep up with industry leaders like MakerDAO and Aave, Curve must find an optimal way to continue supporting development efforts. Judging by the feedback of the Curve DAO, developers will have to be more transparent before a solution can be reached.

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