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- Ethena could start paying revenue to token holders.
- Vitalik Buterin sees a broader goal for predictive markets.
- Donald Trump’s election victory did little for his DeFi project.
Ethena Fee Change
More DeFi protocols could begin sharing revenue with token holders ahead of clearer crypto rules under the incoming Trump administration.
The crypto collective behind stablecoin issuer Ethena is the latest such case.
Market maker Wintermute proposed that Ethena create a committee to examine the possibility of sharing a portion of the protocol’s revenue with ENA token holders.
Ethena DAO members largely support the idea.
The move will strengthen Ethena’s position and is not expected to face any regulatory issues given the new Donald Trump administration, DAO member Nickolas Tazes said in response to the proposal.
Ethena is also not the only protocol considering activating its so-called fee switch:
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- Arbitrum DAO is working on a fee sharing and governance token staking system.
- Uniswap plans to share revenue from its upcoming layer 2 blockchain with UNI token holders.
Previously, DeFi protocols were concerned that distributing profits to token holders could violate US securities laws.
With Trump returning to the White House, crypto rules that will allow such revenue sharing structures could be imminent.
Vitalik on predictive markets
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin takes a closer look at prediction markets, describing a concept he calls “info finance” in a new blog post.
Buterin argues that Ethereum can improve prediction markets by aligning financial incentives with the generation of accurate information.
Infofinance, he says, encompasses prediction markets as well as a broader class of applications that can improve governance, social media, science and decision-making.
Buterin also plans to integrate AI-powered micro-markets into Ethereum, making prediction markets accessible even for low-stakes questions typically overlooked due to insufficient participation.
Info Finance follows six previous articles by Buterin exploring the potential future of Ethereum, outlining user-focused improvements such as reducing the cost of operating validators and improving Layer 2 interoperability .
Stabilization of WLFI sales
Trump’s victory in the US presidential election was overall a boon for the crypto market.
But there was one notable delay: Trump’s own crypto project, World Liberty Financial.
Since the election, the protocol’s cumulative profits from sales of its token, WLFI, have increased 4% to $15.4 million, according to onchain data compiled by Dune user Seoulcalibur.eth.
The president-elect’s pro-crypto stance and ties to the project have done little to overcome the factors that have limited its appeal to investors.
Most notably, it is unclear whether the token will ever have a monetary value.
WLFI tokens will be “locked” until investors vote to allow trading, according to a “gold paper” – a Trumpian version of the crypto practice of publishing white papers providing an overview of new protocols.
Even if WLFI tokens become tradable in the future, the implied $1.6 billion valuation at which the project sells them could leave investors with little upside potential.
This week in DeFi governance
VOTE: GMX seeks to update its liquidation mechanics on version V2
VOTE: ZKsync DAO votes on liquidity center grant program
VOTE: Stargate DAO votes for launch in Ethereum layer 2 mode
Article of the week
With the rise of cryptocurrencies, market observers are looking back to the signs of excess that marked the peak of the previous bull run.
It’s not the best until CT buys random raw materials like tungsten cubes again.
– HORSE (@TheFlowHorse) November 8, 2024
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