The February issue comes to you while a large portion of the crypto-verse has descended on Denver for the week-long ETHDenver gathering. Reports from Denver have confirmed that the Ethereum ecosystem and the larger crypto space are still going strong, and projects continue to build during this trying time. Our review is a little closer to home, covering DXdao. 😊
Swapr V19
February ended with a bang when the Swapr team released Beta V19. It was a monumental release that struck a chord with the community. Headlining the release was the integration of 1inch! This is a massive step for Swapr that really increases the firepower of the Eco Router. Beta 19 also included extended support for 0x to Arbitrum, Optimism, and BNB Chain and updates to allow Limit Orders on Pro Trading Mode. Users can now access any of their favorite protocols right from within the safety and comfort of Swapr. Congratulations to the Swapr team for an amazing release.
Swapr is present at ETHDenver and is supporting a special event, MC², alongside Charged Particles, MetaCartel, MetaCartel Ventures, Hedgey Finance, ConsenSys, and Lbank Labs. If decentralization, privacy, and unconquerable front ends are important to you, MC² at the Mile High Station will be the place to be. You will even be able to get your hands on some Limited Edition stickers espousing the Ethos of Swapr. Decentralization, Privacy, and Unconquerable.
With Swapr on the rise, it is only natural to discuss the next steps for SWPR token. A healthy discussion has started in the forum surrounding SWPR fee collection and ownership transfer, SWPR fee distribution and buybacks, Seamless bridging, SWPR emissions, and requesting DXdao to add liquidity.
A number of community members have already weighed in, and we encourage and welcome more engagement. The discussion around the future of SWPR token will be in the forum for approximately a week, and then it will be moving to its first round of SnapShot Voting. We invite any and all who wish to participate to do so here.
DXdao Priorities Board
DXdao has set its first iteration of the Priority Boards. There have been two monthly check-ins so far. The first introduced the community to the Extensible Signaling Primitive (ESP) dapp that was to be used by the community in the first signaling event. The second was a recap of the signaling event and the way forward.
The signaling event created six priority boards, one for DXao and one for each guild — DXgov, Operations, Voice, Swapr, and Carrot. Each guild ended up with approximately ten priorities, with eighteen for DXdao. Fifteen community members participated. Some of the priorities overlapped, and there was a clear need for more clarity around what each priority posted actually entailed.
The Priorities Board and ESP are still in the experimental stage. As the process evolves, the priorities will become fewer and more distinct. Ultimately the DAO will benefit from the focus of its members and resources.
In the bigger picture of things, as DAOs mature and our knowledge of DAO operations increases, we recognize the need for the collective to organize and signal priorities. Being an on-chain native organization, DXdao aims to achieve this through tools that remain true to its on-chain roots. The Extensible Signaling Primitive (ESP) dapp is such a tool. ESP is a dapp designed for on-chain signal processing. It allows an organization to notify priority items to the community and for the community, in turn, to use allotted signaling points to signal in whatever quantities and to whichever priority they choose. The end result is a list of priorities, in the order of importance, signaled by the community and confirmed on-chain.
DXdao Monetary Policy
The monetary policy committee has been actively discussing redemption and buyback stats, on-chain volume, and key learnings from two months of the new token model. The community has received this new token model well, and DXdao is building its credibility with its continuous approvals of all redemption balancer proposals.
Since its inception, 9398 DXD has been redeemed, with two large redemptions right at the beginning, followed by smaller ones since. In the same period, buyback orders totalling 1200 ETH on CowSwap have been placed. Recent redemptions and buybacks are all occurring at 70% NAV, and the DXD price on the open market appears to be tracking this with some lag. Redemptions do not appear to have an adverse effect on product runway and have not sparked a rush to the exits for holders. The 6% product funding commitment would be $1.7m currently, which is about 10% less than the annualized 1H2023 budget.
DXdao continues to improve the redemption process, working to make them non-custodial for redeemers and conducting more research on the duration of the process and the NAV payout. Furthermore, DXdao aims to improve the buyback process by making it easier to submit CowSwap orders, ensuring consistency in the process and timing, and upgrades with DXgov 1.5.
DXdao Treasury Guild
DXdao has been managing a large treasury for quite some time now, and the discussions among the community have shifted towards ensuring the longevity of its financial future throughout the bear market. The community has been exploring new ways to delegate the treasury effectively to achieve this.
Last year, a proposal was put forward by Karpatkey, who is known for managing the treasuries of other successful DAOs like Gnosis and Balancer. This proposal suggested a six-month pilot test to deploy a small portion of DXdao’s treasury. While the proposal was well-received, concerns about the trust involved in such a deployment were raised. DXdao wished to retain control over its funds while deploying them decentralized yet efficiently without relying on multi-sig signers.
Karpatkey returned to the forum in February with a new proposal addressing these concerns; their new process of execution has deployment completely on-chain, utilizing Safe and Zodiac with minimal trust required. Additionally, the proposal introduces the concept of the “treasury guild,” which aims to cover strategic and financial needs for DXdao and its products.
The open position for treasury management also has an active proposal in the forum, presented by DaddyMatty. This role has strong compatibility with a prospective “treasury guild”.
Social highlights for February
- SWPR maintained its Top 10 Gainers spotlight on @Arbitrum_Hub all through the month of February. DXD made an appearance on the Lunacrush Galaxy Score in 2nd place!
- Arbitrum News DAO said Swapr is not only doing a good job but a great job!
- DXdao’s swag reputation still lives on, a year after its inaugural debut at ETHCC 2022.
- @powers_chris made an appearance on @jointheorigami “Top 10 most active DAO contributors” list at the number 4 spot!
- @zamli gave us a glimpse behind the @SwaprEth curtain and gave us a SwapBox tease.
February Popular Forum Discussions
About DXdao: DXdao is a decentralized collective that builds, owns, and governs DeFi and governance products. Reputation (REP) is voting power in DXdao, and DXD is the financial token with a claim on profit from DXdao products.
DXdao products include Omen (prediction markets), Carrot (programmable incentives), DXgov (governance framework), and Swapr (governance-enabled AMM). DXdao believes in governance and decentralization.
Connect with DXdao: Discord | Twitter | Telegram | Keybase | DAOtalk Forum