This proposal has been developed by the Balancer Foundation Working Group (LuukDAO#5294, Mog#1336, Mkflow#7938, Xeonus#4620, Solarcurve#5075)

SUMMARY

Over the last few months, a group of active community members has been evaluating the potential of establishing a Balancer Foundation. After studying ENS, dYdX, PrimeDAO and others we propose the incorporation of the Balancer Foundation. The Balancer Foundation will provide the DAO with an additional mechanism for executing work, furthering Balancer’s decentralization goals, and building resilience across the Balancer Ecosystem.

MOTIVATION

We believe the formation of the Balancer Foundation is key to furthering the vision of decentralization and creating a robust environment where many groups of people can participate.

Establishing a real world entity that is directed by the DAO provides two primary benefits:

It allows the DAO to operate at a larger scale and engage with service providers who require formal contracts – for example, it could establish a banking relationship to pay for certain service providers that do not accept crypto.
It encourages further decentralization for the Balancer Ecosystem because this entity, at the direction of the DAO, can leverage other teams to execute work that can further the adoption of the Balancer Protocol – for example, it could engage marketing providers or website creators.

SPECIFICATION

This proposal is created to recognize the need for a foundation and acknowledge there will be future proposals for funding this Foundation. The Balancer Foundation will act as an ‘Agent of the DAO’. The Balancer Foundation will be a Cayman Island entity.

Benefits

Establishing a Balancer Foundation will directly benefit the DAO by acting as a mechanism for the DAO to:

direct service providers for major undertakings needed by the DAO
build resiliency within the DAO and across the broader Balancer Ecosystem
interact with meatspace engagements as necessary (eg paying subscriptions)

Foundation Composition

The Balancer Foundation will be composed of a Board and a CEO for day-to-day operations. The board will be headed by a Supervisor of the Board and board members will be established representatives of the Balancer Ecosystem. The CEO and the Supervisor of the Board are to be located in Cayman.

The following people are proposed to hold these roles:

Tristan Relly 16: CEO & only staff member
Sean Inggs 13: Supervisor of the Board
Mkflow#7938: Representative of the Balancer DAO, current baller
Xeonus#4620: Representative of the Balancer DAO, current baller

ECOSYSTEM FOUNDATION EXAMPLES

Foundation examples already exist across multiple projects and protocols within the crypto landscape.

Some examples include:

dYdX Foundation - “purpose is to support and grow every aspect, technical or otherwise, of the current implementation and all future implementations of the dYdX Layer 2 Protocol”. Further explanation of the Foundation’s mission can be found here 14.
ENS Foundation* - is used as a tool by the DAO to have real-world representation. Description of why ENS thinks this is useful, how the foundation is structured, and what powers the DAO has over the Foundation can be read here. 11

*IMPLEMENTATION TIMELINE

January 2022 - The Balancer Foundation Working Group, composed of LuukDAO#5294, Mog#1336, Mkflow#7938, Xeonus#4620, Solarcurve#5075 has been established to develop this proposal, to review the Articles of Incorporation, and to ensure that the Balancer Foundation is considered and leveraged where appropriate as a mechanism for the DAO. Some examples include reviewing service provider agreements, establishing bookkeeping processes, and completing token diversification agreements when needed.
April 2022 - Legal incorporation of Balancer Foundation
- Final approval of the Foundation’s Articles of Incorporation is expected in 1-2 days & will be provided as an attachment on this forum post.
Q2 2022 - Funding request proposal which defines the budget and operation of the Foundation.

VOTING

This proposal will be posted on the forum for a minimum of 5 days prior to voting. Voting will then be open on Snapshot for three days. This vote will be a single-choice vote. You may vote on the Proposal by selecting “Yes, let’s do it” or “No, this is not the way”.

Voting “Yes, let’s do it” on this proposal means:

You recognize a foundation is needed & acknowledge there will be future proposals for funding.
- Note that this proposal is not requesting funding.
- This proposal is acknowledging the need for a Foundation and acknowledges that future proposals will be made for funding.

[Proposal] Incorporation of the Balancer Foundation