A significant governance vote has concluded, with the Aave community supporting a proposal that redirects all revenue from Aave-branded products back to the DAO, consolidating economic rights under the AAVE token. This shift in revenue control marks the end of a months-long dispute that began when swap fees were quietly redirected away from the DAO treasury. The approved proposal, termed 'Aave Will Win,' ensures that 100% of revenue from all Aave products will be returned to AAVE token holders, effectively making the DAO responsible for funding Aave Labs' activities.
A $25 million stablecoin grant and 5,000 AAVE token allocation, valued at approximately $6.8 million, have been approved for Aave Labs. The Aave DAO, a community-run decision-making body, manages the Aave lending protocol, allowing token holders to vote on key decisions such as upgrades, fees, and treasury use. The 'Aave Will Win' proposal resolves a controversy that emerged in December when delegates discovered that the integration of CoWSwap into Aave's interface had shifted swap-related fees away from the community treasury.
This proposal decisively favors token holders, supplementing protocol revenue with application-layer revenue from Aave Pro, Aave App, Horizon, and Aave Kit. Swaps on Aave.com and Aave Pro are already generating $10 to $20 million in additional revenue. Aave App aims to provide a 'fintech-like experience' for mainstream users, with $1 million account protection per user and a card that will generate fees for the treasury.
The proposal also takes a hard line against 'value leakage,' ensuring that service providers build exclusively for Aave, with measurable goals and no tolerance for relationship gating or products built at the expense of token holders. Technical developments include Aave V4's reinvestment feature, which turns idle float capital into yield-generating positions, and the introduction of new 'Spokes' that expand collateral options and address DeFi liquidity demand.
With roughly $25 billion in total value locked across multiple chains, Aave is the largest lending protocol in DeFi, generating $140 million in annual revenue. The target is to scale from $40 billion to $1 trillion, positioning Aave as a financial network that any fintech, bank, or asset manager can plug into.