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Cardano Governance

Rethinking Treasury Allocation

Strategy-driven capital allocation through specialized Initiative DAOs, where treasury funds flow to builders, infrastructure, and growth initiatives with transparent KPI accountability.

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The Framework

Initiative DAOs represent strategic capital buckets within Cardano's Treasury, each with specialized expertise and KPI accountability mechanisms.

01

Treasury Allocates

dReps approve sector-level funding to Initiative DAOs

02

DAOs Deploy Capital

Domain experts fund the highest-impact initiatives

03

KPI Accountability

Measure results, adjust allocations, repeat

Continuous
Capital Cycle
01

Treasury Allocates

dReps approve sector-level funding to Initiative DAOs

↓
02

DAOs Deploy Capital

Domain experts fund the highest-impact initiatives

↓
03

KPI Accountability

Measure results, adjust allocations, repeat

↺ Cycle repeats — capital compounds
MAU
Monthly Active Users
TVL
Total Value Locked
Transactions
On-Chain Activity

Governance Flow

Treasury allocation flows through Intersect to specialized DAOs, each governed by elected representatives and subject to dRep DAO oversight.

Domain Expertise

Each Initiative DAO focuses on a specific domain: builder funding, open-source tooling, or ecosystem marketing.

On-Chain Accountability

Smart contracts enforce governance decisions and ensure transparency in all treasury movements and KPI reporting.

The 2026 Pilot Structure

Three Initiative DAOs, one governance layer, and a clear accountability chain from treasury to ecosystem impact.

CARDANO Treasury funds allocated INTERSECT Milestone Verification funds released INITIATIVE DAO Builder DAO dApps · DeFi · Applications 7-member council INITIATIVE DAO Open Source & Ecosystem Tooling 7-member council INITIATIVE DAO Marketing DAO Growth · Events · Awareness 7-member council GOVERNANCE LAYER dRep DAO — Standards · KPIs · Elects 3/7 Council Seats · Vote of No Confidence Funded Builders Funded Infrastructure Funded Campaigns KPI Reporting & Accountability — MAU · TVL · On-Chain Transactions · Cardano 2030 Vision
Fund Flow
Governance Oversight
KPI Reporting

Governance & Membership

Who Governs. Who Gets In. How It Works.

The 7-Seat Council Model
dRep DAO
Seat 1
dRep DAO
Seat 2
dRep DAO
Seat 3
+
DAO Member
Seat 4
DAO Member
Seat 5
DAO Member
Seat 6
DAO Member
Seat 7

3 seats elected by dRep DAO representatives + 4 seats elected by Initiative DAO members = 7-person governance council

Both Initiative DAO and dRep DAO members can nominate candidates. Council members are individuals, not entities, ensuring direct accountability.

Membership Criteria by DAO

Builder DAO

Funds live dApps and ecosystem applications

  • Live product on Cardano
  • Produces Core KPI (MAU, TVL, or transactions)
  • KYB/KYC verified
  • Entity-based membership

OSET DAO

Maintains infrastructure & tooling

  • Open-source libraries/SDKs
  • Block explorers, indexers
  • Core infrastructure projects
  • KYB/KYC verified

Marketing DAO

Drives growth & awareness

  • Ecosystem marketing track record
  • Events, content, user acquisition
  • Measured impact on awareness
  • KYB/KYC verified

Core Design Principles

🧠

Domain Expertise

Informed voting by members with skin in the game and deep domain knowledge.

🏢

Entities Not Individuals

Membership tied to organizations/projects, not individuals, for stability.

✅

KYB/KYC Verified

All members undergo verification to prevent bad actors and ensure legitimacy.

🔄

Evolving Membership

New builders, tooling projects, and marketing organizations can join as they meet criteria.

dRep DAO

The governance coordination layer that sets standards, defines KPIs, and ensures accountability across all Initiative DAOs.

Governance Standards

dRep DAO establishes baseline governance standards and best practices that all Initiative DAOs follow.

KPI Definition

Sets and evolves KPI requirements (MAU, TVL, transactions) to align with Treasury priorities.

Council Elections

Elects 3 of the 7 council seats, representing dRep community interests in governance.

Vote of No Confidence

Can initiate votes to remove underperforming or misaligned council members or DAOs.

Builder DAO

Funds live dApps and ecosystem applications that drive measurable Cardano adoption and value creation.

Track Record of Impact

~12M ADA
Distributed
34
Builders Funded
100%
KPI Tracking

Distributed Capital

Approximately 12 million ADA distributed to 34 ecosystem builders over the past year, enabling real product development.

KPI Transparency

All funded builders have tracked and reported their KPIs throughout the funding period with complete visibility.

Full Transparency

All decisions, votes, and fund flows are publicly visible. No hidden allocations or opaque governance.

Democratic Voting

One member, one vote governance model ensuring fair representation across all funded builders.

Smart Contract Treasury

Treasury funds governed by smart contracts requiring collective governance approval for all disbursements.

Multi-Party Governance

No single entity controls treasury access—multi-party on-chain governance enforced at the protocol level.

Builder DAO Features

Domain Focus

Specialized expertise in evaluating builder products and their ecosystem impact on Cardano adoption.

Entity-Based Membership

Membership tied to organizations and live products, not individuals, ensuring consistent governance.

7-Member Council

4 seats elected by Builder DAO members, 3 seats from dRep DAO, ensuring balanced representation.

Dynamic Strategy

Funding strategies evolve based on ecosystem needs, market conditions, and KPI performance.

Open Source & Ecosystem Tooling DAO

Funds and maintains the critical infrastructure, SDKs, and developer tools that power Cardano's ecosystem.

Maintenance & Sustainability

Provides ongoing funding for critical open-source projects that require long-term maintenance and updates.

New Tooling Development

Funds development of new SDKs, libraries, and tools that expand Cardano's developer capabilities.

Domain-Specific KPIs

Tracks usage metrics for libraries, repository activity, adoption by builders, and developer ecosystem growth.

The Developer Flywheel

Better tools → More builders → More dApps → Stronger ecosystem → Better KPI metrics.

Marketing DAO

Drives awareness, user acquisition, and measurable growth for the Cardano ecosystem.

Awareness Campaigns

Funds targeted marketing campaigns to increase Cardano's visibility in key markets and communities.

User Acquisition

Supports initiatives that bring new users to Cardano dApps and ecosystem projects.

Events & Conferences

Organizes and sponsors major events that bring the ecosystem together and attract new participants.

Measurable Growth

Tracks MAU growth, user engagement metrics, and market awareness to demonstrate impact and accountability.