TechFlow reports that on February 25, Marc Zeller, founder of the Aave DAO, released a comprehensive report sharply criticizing Aave Labs for serious issues concerning fund utilization, product development, and governance participation. The report states that Aave Labs has received a cumulative total of $86 million in funding and 23% of the initial token supply, yet its product development record stands at 0 wins and 6 losses, with no accountability reports published.
The report reveals that Aave Labs unilaterally transferred approximately $5.5 million in transaction fee revenue without prior approval and leveraged 663K undisclosed voting rights within governance to block transparency proposals. Notably, the Aave V3 protocol’s annual revenue of $140 million is primarily generated and maintained by third-party service providers—such as BGD Labs—not by Aave Labs itself.
This report comes amid Aave Labs’ ongoing effort to secure DAO approval for a new $51 million funding proposal, despite refusing to meet the community’s transparency-related prerequisites. Meanwhile, core development team BGD Labs has announced its departure from the Aave ecosystem effective April 1.
