According to archived records, 4,833 decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) treasuries held $10.8 billion on April 15, 2022. Over the course of 309 days, by February 19, 2023, the treasuries dwindled to $8.8 billion. However, during the past 90 days, there has been a significant surge, with the funds held by DAO treasuries increasing by 144% to the current value of $21.5 billion.
Decentralized Autonomous Organizations Witness Explosive Growth in 3 Months
Following the failure of the first decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) in 2016, the concept of DAOs experienced substantial growth. As of May 19, 2023, deepdao.io, a web portal dedicated to the analysis and information surrounding these organizations, has documented approximately 12,763 DAOs. In October 2022, Bitcoin.com News reported on the financial assets held by DAO treasuries, which amounted to a total value of $9.8 billion. Notably, the largest treasury belonged to Uniswap, boasting a stash of $2.8 billion.
At that time, Bitdao held a cache of $1.3 billion in assets, closely following Uniswap’s DAO treasury. However, the subsequent months witnessed a decline, with the funds held by DAO treasuries plunging to a low of $8.8 billion by February 2023. Fast forward to today, May 19, 2023, and the scenario has transformed dramatically. The funds held by DAO treasuries have surged to $21.5 billion. Notably, Bitdao’s treasury now holds the third position, while Uniswap’s treasury secures the fourth spot among the largest treasuries.
At the forefront of DAO treasuries stands the Optimism Collective, which holds $4.3 billion in digital assets. On its heels is Arbitrum’s treasury, valued at $4.1 billion, while Bitdao secures a substantial stash of approximately $2.5 billion. Uniswap follows closely with a cache of crypto assets totaling $2.2 billion, and Polygon claims the fifth spot with a treasury valued at $1 billion. As the value held by DAO treasuries skyrocketed by 144% in the last 90 days, the number of DAOs also witnessed a 9% surge. Among the vast list of recorded DAO treasuries in deepdao.io, there’s approximately 6.9 million governance token holders.
Within the DAO ecosystem, an active community of 2.2 million voters and proposal makers is actively shaping the decentralized autonomous organization landscape. The cumulative votes cast thus far amount to 11.9 million, with 114,300 decisions made across the extensive network of 12,763 DAOs. Despite a 144% surge since February, the assets under management (AUM) for DAOs in the previous month hovered around $25.5 billion, resulting in an approximate loss of $4 billion. As of today, the AUM stands at $21.5 billion, comprising $18.3 billion in liquid funds and $3.1 billion locked in vesting obligations.
What are your thoughts on the surge in DAO treasuries and the growing influence of decentralized decision-making? Share your thoughts about this subject in the comments section below.
