Summary
Following the outcome of MIP 29, MTA Governors will soon be asked to vote on the future direction of the mStable project, which may include an acquisition or full shutdown of the mStable products and subsequent shutdown of the the mStableDAO.
As part of MIP 29, normal governance processes, including scheduled signer elections, were temporarily put on hold.
This RFC seeks feedback on a proposed path forward to ensure a secure and well-functioning signer group is retained to enact the will of MTA Governors for as long as is required based on the outcome of the upcoming MIP 30.
Abstract
The previous signer rotation officially ended on 15th of February, and signers have been asked to remain in their posts without compensation temporarily while the path forward for the mStableDAO is established through ongoing governance processes. During this time, the previously proposed process around signer elections was halted.
It is proposed that in order to ensure the security of the ProtocolDAO and TreasuryDAO going forward, the changes outlines below are agreed upon and enacted if this proposal passes successfully.
Signer Compensation
It is suggested that signer compensation of 1000 USDC per month is reinstated, effective from the 1st of April 2023, until the multisigs are no longer required or until this proposal is superseded by another.
For the ProtocolDAO, compensation of signers would be stopped when the ProtocolDAO relinquished ownership of the Nexus contract. For the TreasuryDAO, compensation would be stopped if the amount of assets custodied by the DAO dropped below $20,000 USD in value. At this point, signers would be requested to remain in their positions without compensation in case their services were needed in the future.
Signer Structure and Replacement Process
Both the TreasuryDAO and ProtocolDAO must maintain a 4/6 signer structure at all times to ensure security as outlined in TDP 44.
If a signer expresses a desire to leave their position outside of a regular election process (which may not be required in the future depending on the outcome of MIP 30) , the signer group should work together to find and suggest a new trusted signer and the change should be ratified through a governance vote.
If signer compensation is stopped due to the conditions described in the previous section being met, signer structure could be reduced to a 3/5, 2/3 or 2/4 multisig by agreement within the signer group to allow for easier execution of any required transactions and to allow for any signers who may not wish to be available without compensation.
Current Signer Changes
The current signer group have been asked if they are willing to continue on as signers to avoid the need for a full election cycle at this time. One members of the TreasuryDAO and one member of the ProtocolDAO have indicated that they would like to be rotated out of signer positions. As part of this RFC, it is therefore proposed that these two signers, who are both core contributors, are replaced by two other core contributors. The incoming core contributors would prefer to keep their identities private but other team members will be able to vouch for their trustworthiness here.
ProtocolDAO
- James (0xC5ee70CDBa695F864FA07A378aF6711f45D1339A) replaced by core contributor (0xA31DD58278Ef3777718AD6faFB8b0cebbB23b975)
TreasuryDAO
- Nesk (0xBb330652D70eF1204d39d0880896B017a1BB1774) replaced by core contributor (0x507E0c1F8893611534760Ab5F95EfE48B46CD932) .
Reminder of Scope of Treasury DAO Activities
It should be restated as part of this proposal that the role of TreasuryDAO signers is to enact the will of MTA governors, following the Treasury charter voted on earlier this year by MTA governors.
The mandate of TreasuryDAO signers includes:
- Execute transactions relating to treasury assets or disburse funds in line with approved governance proposals
- Compensate signers on a monthly basis as per this proposal
- Compensate mStableDAO Cat Herder for the term of their tenure as decided through governance
- Fund protocol wallets with ETH to cover protocol fees as requested by the ProtocolDAO
- Agree internally on who will take on the role of Operational Signer as defined in TDP 47 to facilitate the queuing of transactions in line with governance decisions. Since this role has typically been carried out by full time mStable contributors, and that these roles may no longer exist in the near future, signers should expect they each may be asked to queue transactions from time to time.
Motivation
Regardless of the path forward for the mStable project chosen by MTA Governors, having a stable and reliable signer group for both the ProtocolDAO and TreasuryDAO will be critical. The ProtocolDAO has control over mStable contract upgrades and the TreausuryDAO custodies around $2.5m worth of assets. Given the likelihood of significant changes within the team and subDAOs, it is more important than ever that this group can operate independently and is incentivized correctly.
It is suggested to reinstate the compensation to ensure that signers are incentivized to remain in their positions and remain active during this period.
It is also suggested to create a simple process for replacing signers as required to avoid the overhead of a full signer election during this time.
Pros
- Signers will be well incentivized to remain in their positions and carry out their duties for as long as they are required.
- Future signer changes will be relatively simple and will still require the approval of MTA Governors.
Cons
- A cost of $12,000 per month will be reintroduced to the DAO for as long as the signer groups’ services are required.
- Current signers are not forced to reapply for their position so their is some increased risk of less active signers.
Next Steps
After adequate time for discussion in this forum, it is proposed that a formal TDP is created based on this RFC. The community is encouraged to provide feedback on the changes outlined here.
