Aave tokenholders are set to vote on a $51 million funding proposal amid a public dispute over roughly $86 million in prior funding to Aave Labs. The confrontation raises fresh questions about accountability and capital allocation within one of decentralized finance’s largest lending protocols.
The latest escalation came from the Aave Chan Initiative (ACI) and its founder, Marc Zeller, who published what he described as an “audit” of Aave Labs ahead of the Snapshot vote tied to the “Aave Will Win” proposal. In a post on X, ACI urged tokenholders to review the report, which applies a framework of deliverables, cost, and return to Labs’ historical funding.
As the Aave DAO is about to vote on the largest funding proposal in its history involving a controversial contributor, Aave Labs, we published a full audit of their (lack of) performance.
— Marc ”七十 Billy” Zeller (@Marczeller) February 25, 2026
It's a very long read, but I invite everyone to dive in and form their own opinion based on… https://t.co/1MgBUeigye
Is Horizon’s $466M Supply Misleading?
A central focus of the critique is Horizon, Aave’s real-world asset market. Zeller cited onchain data indicating roughly $466 million in total supply, with about 69% in stablecoins and 31% in real-world asset collateral, largely concentrated in a single asset, USCC. He argued that once incentive-driven and idle positions are excluded, the functional RWA base is closer to $135 million.
The report also questioned Horizon’s economics. It pointed to roughly $216,000 in cumulative DAO revenue in the collector contract, versus about $4.2 million in Merkl incentives and additional costs linked to GHO’s savings rate, framing the result as an estimated $24 spent for every $1 earned. The analysis further alleged user concentration, with three positions accounting for 59% of the pool.
“As the Snapshot for the $51M ‘Aave Will Win’ ask drops tomorrow, take a look at our Audit of Aave Labs’ performance and their ~$86M in funding they’ve received to date,” Aave Chan wrote on X.
The report also revisited past controversies, including claims that partner swap fees shifted to a Labs-controlled address without a governance vote, citing an estimated 933 ETH in mainnet distributions and roughly $5.5 million in total.
Beyond Horizon, the audit argued that Aave Labs delivered early versions of the protocol but that subsequent upgrades and revenue growth stemmed primarily from DAO service providers. It also warned that transferring 75,000 AAVE tokens under the new proposal would expand voting power for an entity whose broader holdings remain undisclosed. The Snapshot outcome will signal whether tokenholders prioritize expansion toward Aave V4 or demand stricter financial transparency first.
