Stani Kulechov, founder of Aave, says the protocol’s governance token isn’t going cheap. His comments followed a report that Payward, a crypto exchange, had submitted a proposal to acquire AAVE at a steep discount.
Kulechov pushed back firmly. The “Aave Will Win” proposal, he noted, redirected 100% of protocol and Aave-branded product revenue to the DAO and token holders. That’s not the move of a project looking to sell itself off.
The Payward bid appears to have gained little traction within the Aave community. Governance discussions suggest most delegates view the proposal as undervaluing the protocol, which is one of DeFi’s largest lending platforms.
It’s an interesting signal for the broader DAO governance space. Major protocols are increasingly fielding acquisition interest, but communities are proving they’d rather keep building than cash out at fire-sale prices.
