I think these discussions are premature until the Founders have come to the table and we know exactly what they want and why.
Notwithstanding - let’s have the convo.
Ask yourself: who is this fair proposal really fair for?
Is it fair to big bag holders who want to exit? Yes. Whales get an efficient way to exit from their large positions in this highly illiquid instrument. Best case scenario for them.
Is it fair to powerful protocols? Yes. Powerful protocols get an efficient way to acquire desirable treasury assets at a discount without all that pesky slippage in the open market. Very fair for big protocols who want to get even bigger.
It is fair to the opportunistic capitalists and arbitrageurs who opened positions recently because they saw an opportunity to make money? Yes. This proposal pushes their timeline forward. No need to wait for the hard work of bringing the project back to backing, no need to slowly unwind their position so they don’t tank the market - they can book their returns in one transaction - and soon!
DCF always claimed to be a disinterested party. He is. And credit to him for being a transparent rational actor.
This proposal is entirely fair to anyone who sees the world through his eyes - that markets exist to reward maximum capital efficiency, and answers are obvious when you look at the spreadsheet.
Respectfully to him and others like him - I am not a disinterested party - and I have a different set of principles.
I put my money (small as it may be by comparison) to work in service of those principles when I invested in this protocol.
This proposal proves to me that however misguided/negligent/criminal the Founders may have acted, at least their founding ethos was correct. This space NEEDS projects and people who do not have profit-above-all as their guiding principle. Otherwise small and vulnerable protocols will just get run over and picked apart by disinterested parties and bad actors.
The sad irony here is that this situation is EXACTLY the kind of moment that Lobis was designed for. This is the moment we need a moral actor with influence/power to step in and do the right thing - which is not necessarily the maximally profitable thing.
If this were happening to another protocol, and Lobis was functioning as intended, Lobis would step in. Not to carve up the project, but to support it. Help to orchestrate a campaign to bring the founders back to the table and find a way for them to exit. Then offer assistance - finance and skills - to help the community reclaim what’s fallen into disrepair. Then add that project to the community of others who are all pulling together the same way.
I think this proposal rewards the wrong people.
I think these discussions are still premature.
I can’t support this version of it - not now.
To me the right way forward is for everyone to work together to bring the Founders back to the table. We need to hear what they want and why they feel they’re entitled to it.
Olympus said they are communicating with them. As of yesterday one Founder is present and talking in the Discord. Another indicated he would reach out to Core Team today.
This is what a path forward looks like to me.
I know it’s hard to counsel patience when the Founders ghosted and communication has been almost non-existent, but that is exactly what I’m doing.
Last bit: I don’t think that my position is morally superior, and I don’t want to knock anyone who’s acting out of rational self-interest. If I came across sounding self-righteous or smug, that’s my bad. This market runs on profit seeking behaviors and investors have the right to act as they see fit. I completely understand anyone who’s been trapped on this leaky boat and wants to grab a lifeline - any lifeline - to get themselves out. I just prefer to fix the damn ship!
