Community Update:
Clarifying AADAO “Sunset” (again), Funds Return Process, & Current Financials.
Several community members have asked why AADAO funds were not immediately returned to the Cosmos Hub cp following AADAO’s “sunset” announcement last year. It’s a fair question, and stems from a persistent misunderstanding triggered by the day AADAO used the word “sunset” a year ago.
I’ve addressed this multiple times across multiple channels. I sincerely hope this is the last time I have to do this.
Inshallah.
What “Sunset” Actually Meant
When AADAO core contributors announced a “sunset”, they were not dissolving the DAO or ending operations.
In reality, the only thing that was being retired was the core team’s collective will to seek renewal funding from the Hub.
Unfortunately, the term “sunset” implied a full and imminent shutdown, but that’s not what happened.
In practice, AADAO remained operational after the “sunset” announcement. Between October and December 2024, the DAO approved $1.9 million in new grants, including roughly $588,000 in venture-related funding.
For more on these late-term approvals and allocations, read the Ninth Transparency Report.
Many of these grants include milestone payments extending into late 2025, meaning the DAO both retained and CREATED new financial and operational obligations that made an immediate drawdown of operations or the return of funds impossible.
Funds cannot be returned while active contracts, milestones, or administrative commitments are outstanding.
AADAO Funding Summary & SubDAO Wallet Activity
The DAO received 1,563,811 ATOM in total from the Cosmos Hub through:
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CH Proposal 95: 588,000 ATOM
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CH Proposal 865: 975,811 ATOM
The DAO also stewards a 450K ATOM POL deployment through CH Proposal 800.
All of the above funds were originally sent to AADAO’s 4-of-7 multisig:
cosmos1jggracsvp6fkw0ktf544lpda6dwrrxggx9a20n
From there, they were distributed across three DAODAO subDAO wallets:
Most of the ATOM distributed through Cosmos Hub Proposals 96 and 865 was allocated to the StratComm subDAO wallet, which has since been fully closed out at my suggestion.
“Closed out” means the subDAO wallet has been deprecated, and all remaining unused tokens have been returned in full to the cp.
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StratComm Wallet: Returned 216,310 ATOM and 80,591 USDC to the cp in July 2025 via Proposal A41.
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Operations Wallet: Monthly compensation payments are approved and released from this subDAO wallet. The final core contributors on payroll were @CuriousJ and Delisse Gamboa (Operations Associate), whose last salary disbursement occurred in July 2025.
Currently, the only individuals receiving monthly compensation (ranging between 20% - 65% FTE) are the two active Oversight Committee members, myself and Matt Brown (@mattatom). We are compensated at a rate of $75/hr.
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Grants Wallet: Initial, milestone-based, and final grant payments are made from this subDAO wallet. Historically, this wallet was also used to disburse venture-related outlays.
To date, Operations and Grants hold approximately $1 million combined; the unused balance of these funds will be returned once all outstanding grant and administrative obligations are closed or fulfilled. As of the end of July, 11 grants remained active. Since then, I have either discontinued or accelerated the closure of 8 of 11 grants.
I’m aiming to close out all grants program commitments by mid-November, and the funds remaining in Ops and Grants subDAO wallets can return to the cp in the same manner the StratComm funds returned to the Hub.
The 450,000 ATOM POL that AADAO stewards as per Proposal 800 requires the cooperation and coordination of the 4-7 msig. Once the tokens finish unbonding (the unwind is occurring in four tranches due to rate limits), the final step must be performed by the msig. Cosmos Labs is providing technical support to ensure the ATOM is returned responsibly and safely.
Top Level Multisig
The 4-of-7 multisig signers are:
Youssef Amrani
Ryan Orr (Better Future)
Reena Shtedle (Citadel)
Luke Saunders (Delphi)
Xavier Meegan
Jeonghwan, Cosmostation
Dilan A. (Imperator)
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Cosmostation and Imperator remain consistently and exceedingly responsive for all signing-related issues. Thank you
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Ryan Orr is non-responsive.
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Youssef Amrani, though formally removed from the DAO, remains on the msig and will not be contacted.
Administrative and Trust Wind-Down
To ensure that the AADAO Guernsey Trust is properly administered and governed independently of current Oversight members, and to guarantee that the Trust is wound down in compliance with its obligations while all records are securely preserved:
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$12,000 was paid to Lemma (Trustee) to secure and extend their services through 2028 Proposal A124.
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$40,000 Restricted Expense Grant was given to Lemma to cover necessary project tools (ClickUp, Google) and incidental legal/administrative costs Proposal A127.
Karel Olivier is the Lemma interface for all AADAO Trustee matters.
These minimal workspaces remain active so that the Trustee retains access to historical data in case of dispute.
Any unused funds from this restricted expense grant will also be returned to the cp at termination of the Trust.
Transparency and Accountability
All financial transactions, subDAO proposals, and administrative actions have been communicated transparently through AADAO’s and Oversight’s public channels: forum, Twitter, and on-chain subDAO proposal text.
Unlike earlier subDAO proposals, recent spend props (since August 1) now include sufficient context and documentation so that any community member, regardless of prior familiarity with AADAO’s history or operations, can understand the purpose and justification for each disbursement.
Should you have any additional questions regarding the financials or the financial status of the DAO, please tag Matt Brown (AADAO Oversight, Accountant & Auditor) @mattatom.
Finally, if you have questions for me, please post them here on the Forum and within this thread. I’d prefer to avoid discussions on X, as conversations there become fragmented and difficult to track. Maintaining a single, coherent, and transparent source of shared information will help ensure clarity and accountability for everyone involved.
Thank you.