XAO DAO is preparing to implement significant governance upgrades on the XRP Ledger within the next two to three months, aiming to foster greater community participation. The proposed changes include the introduction of wallet delegation, adjustments to quorum rules, and the establishment of community mini-grants.
These planned enhancements emerge as the XRP Ledger ecosystem faces scrutiny regarding developer support and the sustainability of projects. The recent shutdown of Gen3’s retail platforms, aigent.run and AxiomProtocol, on August 12, highlights these challenges. Gen3 cited weak user demand and rising infrastructure costs for the closure, although the company indicated it would continue to support its core XRPL infrastructure and participate in the ledger’s amendment process. Users will have until September 13 to withdraw funds from the affected platforms.
Fabio Marzella, co-founder of XAO DAO, views the Gen3 situation as indicative of a broader issue. According to Marzella, solely funding developers is insufficient if there isn’t a viable path for projects to become sustainable businesses. He noted that some within the community are assessing how long they can self-fund their work, describing it as a potential “last roll of the dice.”
On-chain data from Santiment presents a mixed outlook for the XRP Ledger. While daily active addresses averaged 35,700 in August, an increase from July’s 26,400, the number of new XRP wallets has remained largely unchanged. This suggests that increased activity among existing users has not translated into significant user base expansion. Concurrently, XRP closed the week near a 21-month low.
XAO DAO’s overarching objective with these upgrades is to empower the community with the “ability to act,” moving beyond mere voting capabilities. The proposed changes aim to make participation more accessible and representative by allowing members to delegate voting power, adjust quorum rules, and access community mini-grants. The stated goal is to prevent inactive participation from obstructing decisions while ensuring governance remains connected to the active community.
Despite these plans, significant uncertainties persist regarding the implementation of the upgrades. XAO DAO has not yet provided a definitive timeline for the changes, nor have the detailed voting mechanics for wallet delegation, quorum adjustments, and mini-grants been specified. The practical execution of these governance elements remains to be seen.
Why This Matters
The materials describe a narrow update: XAO DAO is preparing to implement governance changes over the next two to three months, including wallet delegation, adjustments to quorum rules, and the introduction of community mini-grants, to foster greater community involvement in the XRP Ledger. The final timetable for the proposed changes has not been provided.
Broader Context
Source materials place the factual news in this context: several XRPL projects have already scaled back or shut down.
Leave a Reply