Aave governance dispute intensifies as ACI founder publishes ‘audit’ of Aave Labs ahead of $51M funding vote

Tensions in Aave governance have increased as Marc Zeller, founder of Aave Chan Initiative (ACI), published a critical 'audit' of Aave Labs' performance just before a vote on a proposed $51 million funding package.

The audit scrutinizes Aave Labs' track record against approximately $86 million in funding received to date, arguing that Labs has failed to provide adequate accountability reports, cost breakdowns, or financial transparency. Zeller specifically analyzed Aave’s RWA-focused market, Horizon, claiming its high Total Value Locked (TVL) figures are misleading due to heavy reliance on incentive farming and concentration risks, suggesting the actual functional market is much smaller and less diversified.

Furthermore, the critique extends to Aave Labs' contribution post-V3.0, alleging that subsequent protocol upgrades came from DAO service providers, not Labs. Zeller also alleged that Aave Labs improperly redirected 15 to 25 basis points of partner-fee revenue, previously accruing to the DAO, to a Labs-controlled address without a governance vote. The audit frames the upcoming $51M proposal, which includes routing 100% of Labs' product revenue back to the DAO, as merely reversing this disputed redirection, posing a fundamental question to tokenholders about accountability and ROI before underwriting a new expansion plan.

(Source：The Block)