The Aave alignment saga rages on after founder Stani Kulechov declared Aave Labs’ intent to vote against BGD Labs’ tokenholder alignment proposal from earlier this week, with voting commencing on Dec. 21.
Following last week’s governance dispute over CoWSwap interface fees, Ernesto Boado, the co-founder of BGD Labs and former CTO at Aave Labs, released a token alignment proposal to bring clarity to the ecosystem’s dynamics and to shift more control from Aave Labs to the DAO.
On Dec. 18, Kulechov responded in the forums with the intent to vote “no” on the proposal. The Aave Labs founder was quick to emphasize the importance of open dialogue within the DAO and to state that Aave Labs is “100% committed” to improving communication.
Kulechov explained his stance, stating, “Moving forward with this proposal, especially at this time, will certainly slow down and potentially derail what we’ve all been working towards for years. It is bad for Aave Protocol, the DAO, and AAVE token holders.”
“It forces a complex legal and operational issue into a simple yes/no, empty payload vote with no clear path forward. A complex issue like this deserves a dedicated, structured process and multiple Temp Checks with a concrete plan to achieve resolution,” he concluded.
Despite this, the proposal was advanced to a Snapshot vote, a move criticized by Boado, who posted, “This is not, in ethos, my proposal. Aave Labs has (for whatever reason) unilaterally submitted my proposal to vote in a rush, with my name on it, and without notifying me at all. If asked, I would not have approved it.”
“It was not my intention to submit the vote while the community was still having a healthy discussion around it, with valuable points appearing continuously. It breaks all codes of trust with the community,” he added.
Meanwhile, the protocol’s AAVE token has cratered by almost 20% over the past week amid the ongoing uncertainty.
Aave Labs provided The Defiant with additional information on the framework behind its decision-making process regarding the proposal.
On defining the roles of both Aave DAO and Aave Labs, the spokesperson said, “The Aave DAO fully governs the Aave Protocol, including its smart contracts, risk framework, treasury, and protocol economics. Aave Labs is one of several contributors building independently on top of the permissionless protocol, funding and operating products that help expand adoption and improve user experience. These roles are distinct but complementary, and this structure has helped Aave become the most trusted lending protocol in DeFi.”
They also expanded on Stani’s thoughts about potential pitfalls that may accompany the passage of this proposal, citing the need for clarity and predictability to sustain Aave’s momentum.
“This is an important governance discussion, but it deserves more than a binary yes/no vote. Brand and IP frameworks carry real legal, operational, and institutional implications. With Aave approaching major milestones like V4 and continued institutional adoption, stability and clarity are essential. The healthiest path forward is a thoughtful, structured process that strengthens alignment without disrupting growth or creating unnecessary uncertainty,” the Aave Labs spokesperson concluded.
The proposal moved to the voting stage on Sunday evening, and as of early Tuesday, it stands at 67% NAY and 28% ABSTAIN, with less than 3% of votes cast in favor.
The ABSTAIN vote is led by Aave Chan Initiative (ACI), a leading Aave DAO service provider, who stated, “This vote was created without author approval and rushed without discussions resolved. Real vote will happen when discussion reaches more maturity.”
GHO Supply Hits All-Time High
While the debate rages on in the governance forum, Aave’s stablecoin, GHO, has reached a new all-time high market capitalization of $483 million, according to DefiLlama, making it the 21st-largest stablecoin in decentralized finance (DeFi).
GHO has had a strong 2025, growing by more than 230% from just a $146 million valuation at the beginning of the year.
