A purpose-built, Smart Contract DAO-governed funding mechanism that advances Cardano by supporting and sustaining high-potential projects.
The Cardano ecosystem has long been a pioneer in blockchain innovation. With decentralized governance implemented and the treasury unlocked, many things need to be funded and the community has to come up with effective and sustainable funding mechanisms.
The ecosystem is already developing ways to fund things like open-source development, critical infrastructure, and innovation grants! There remains a gap when it comes to funding the projects that bring broader adoption, more transactions, and higher Total Value Locked (TVL) on Cardano.
CB DAO addresses a critical gap in Cardano's governance and funding structure by providing specialized evaluation, strategic oversight, and sustainable funding pathways for high-potential projects. While existing committees serve vital functions in core protocol development, open source maintenance, and initial project funding, there remains no home for companies building the application that people use on Cardano.
Underpinning the CB DAO is a mission to encourage user adoption, foster TVL growth, and increase transaction volume on the Cardano Blockchain for the Cardano Community. This emphasis on tangible metrics and established projects distinguishes us from other funding structures.
Through semi-annual budget proposals, we distribute resources to projects that can demonstrate on-chain activity and active user bases.
By openly sharing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)—ranging from transaction counts to commit activity—funded projects remain accountable to both the DAO and the broader Cardano community.
Governance decisions, including funding requests to treasury withdrawals, go through transparent voting processes enforced by on-chain smart contracts, ensuring that no single group can unilaterally control funds.
Provide funding for development, growth, and operational costs of Cardano-based projects.
Cultivate a community where expertise, accountability, and feedback flow among Cardano builders.
Projects receiving funds must track and report on metrics like on-chain transactions, active users, TVL, downloads, and commit activity. This ensures measurable impact and helps prioritize proposals that offer the greatest ecosystem benefit.
Membership in the CB DAO is open to companies operating functional Cardano dApps with real, active usage on mainnet. Once verified and approved via a Know Your Business (KYB) process and a technical review, new members receive governance tokens that grant voting and influence rights.
Members elect 3–7 board representatives before each yearly budget allocation. The board oversees membership approvals, compliance, and key governance actions.
Proposals for funding undergo a "temperature check" via a poll on the Clarity Platform. Meeting the required voting threshold of at least 15% of DAO members is essential, and successful proposals must have more upvotes than downvotes to proceed.
If a proposal passes the temperature check, the board compiles a withdrawal request. 51% of all DAO members must approve before smart contracts release the funds. This stringent requirement safeguards against misallocation of resources.
Any treasury funds left unspent at the end of the budget period are returned to the Cardano Treasury, and the CB DAO is dissolved for that cycle, ensuring funds are not indefinitely locked away.
The treasury is established using ADA allocated to CB DAO from the Cardano Treasury. A treasury deposit would flow directly into the smart contract governed treasury. The CB DAO will leverage an Agora DAO to collectively govern funds.
Each verified member receives one fungible governance token that must be held and staked throughout the budget period, aligning incentives with the DAO's success.
Projects submit proposals detailing their roadmap, budget, and KPIs. Previously funded initiatives must also report progress to be considered for renewed support.
To bolster credibility and safeguard its members, the CB DAO intends to form as a Wyoming Decentralized Unincorporated Nonprofit Association (DUNA) or a similar legal structure. This framework:
We are set to support and sustain Cardano's evolving dApp ecosystem. Here's a brief look at our yearly operating cycle:
This rhythm ensures that critical governance actions—from membership approvals to distributing funds—are conducted in a predictable, transparent manner.
If you're a builder, innovator, or stakeholder looking to shape Cardano's future, the CB DAO invites you to:
By working together under a clear, rational, and forward-thinking framework, the CB DAO aims to ensure that Cardano remains a leader in blockchain technology—now and into the future.