2024-10-13
A new proposal from a member of the
Arbitrum DAO calls for the recall of nearly $120 million worth of ARB tokens
allocated to Arbitrum's Gaming Catalyst Program (GCP) due to missed deadlines.
The GCP, which was approved in June to
foster gaming ecosystem growth on Arbitrum, was intended to issue grants,
requests for proposals (RFPs), and provide updates regularly. However, delays
in meeting key milestones have raised concerns within the community.
Joseph Schiarizzi, a DAO member and
DeFi founder, submitted a proposal, citing the GCP’s failure to deliver on
its commitments. Among the issues raised are the absence of a program website,
missed RFPs, and insufficient public updates. Schiarizzi's proposal calls for
the return of 220 million ARB tokens—currently valued at about $118.6
million—from the GCP’s multisig wallet back to the DAO's treasury.
In response, Steven Goldfeder,
co-founder of Offchain Labs, Arbitrum’s developer, acknowledged the delays but
pointed to the complexity of setting up the GCP, including legal and
organizational challenges, as a reason for the program's slow progress. Goldfeder
emphasized that biweekly status calls had taken place and argued that the
program's foundations were still being established.
While Schiarizzi noted that he does not
expect his proposal to pass, he stressed that the goal is to increase
transparency and accountability for the GCP, not to dismantle it. He reiterated
his desire for the program to succeed, but only if the original obligations to
the DAO are met.
Gaming Catalyst Program (GCP) allocated
225 million ARB tokens (worth $215 million at that time) over three years to accelerate the development of gaming
projects on the Arbitrum network. With ARB’s decline in value, this funding is
now worth about $122 million. The proposal’s outcome will be closely watched
as the DAO seeks to balance innovation with effective oversight.
