Aave drops out as community debates who controls the brand

A dispute over who controls the brand and online presence of Aave, a decentralized lending platform, has spilled over into governance and procedures, sending the AAVE token tumbling, down 11% in the past 24 hours.

The hot spot is a governance discussion post from BGD Labs co-founder Ernesto Boado, who argues that AAVE holders should take formal control of Aave’s “branded assets” such as domains, social handles, naming rights and other gateways. BGD Labs is a group founded by three community members that surfaced in 2022.

According to Boado, leaving these assets in the hands of third parties creates a structural imbalance. Even if a contributor acts in good faith today, unilateral control over aave.com and major social media accounts can be used to direct narratives, product distribution and monetization in ways that the DAO cannot meaningfully verify, Boado said.

Boado’s proposal is presented first as a question of ownership and second as a debate over the product. He’s not saying Aave Labs shouldn’t build the interface or ship products. He argues that the DAO should own the master identity and access points and then decide how those assets can be used, including whether a party gets permission to manage them under enforceable terms.

The debate quickly turned into a procedural drama.

After several days of discussion, Aave founder Stani Kulechov put the proposal to an instant vote.

Boado objected, saying the proposal was not put forward in the spirit he wanted. He said Aave Labs rushed it to a vote, put his name on it and did so without informing him. In his words, it broke trust and interrupted a discussion that was leading to meaningful new points.