

Discover more from The Tally Newsletter
Welcome back to the Tally Newsletter, a weekly publication focused on DeFi and DAO governance. We’ll keep you updated on key proposals, procedural changes, newly launched voting systems, and shifting power dynamics in the Tally ecosystem. We’ll also recommend the most important reads and listens of the week to ensure you’re an informed citizen of web3.
I’m coolhorsegirl, a DeFi native excited to bring you the latest, weekly. With prior experience at Index Coop and across the DeFi ecosystem, I’m interested in DAO governance and general DeFi innovation aimed at maximizing decentralization.
This week, we’re talking Arbitrum airdrop. It’s one small (or potentially large) step for my wallet and one giant step for decentralization, if you will. ARB has major implications for DeFi governance and furthers the prevailing pro-delegate narrative we’ve seen trending in the last year. We’ll also run through a few proposals, notably Paradigm’s proposal to invest in smart contract security agency Code4rena. Here we go…
🤿 Deep Dive: Wen Arbitrum token? Now!
Arbitrum is decentralizing. On Thursday, L2 solution Arbitrum announced a much-awaited token drop of over 1.1B ARB tokens to be distributed on March 23. In the meantime, users can nominate delegates to guide the course of the project. Early Arbitrum users can claim the new ARB token according to eligibility criteria. Users will get 11.6% of the entire token supply and projects built on Arbitrum will get 1.1%. (You can check your eligibility here, and you may be surprised.) LFG!
Enter community-driven DAO governance. With this token launch, the developer team behind Aribitrum, Offchain Labs relinquishes its role as the sole entity with authority to make changes to the scaling technology. ARB governance will be self-executing; holders will be able to vote on proposals on Tally. This means that code will be updated immediately upon a vote’s execution, no intermediary required. In fact, Arbitrum is the first L2 to launch self-executing governance.
Arbitrum is also taking part in what is perhaps web3 governance’s hottest topic—liquid democracy. ARB token holders can delegate their voting authority ($ARB) to a trusted representative, making votes a mix between direct and representative democracy. There’s still time to self-nominate as a delegate. And if you can’t be bothered to vote (no judgment there, I’m in this boat, too), why not delegate?
Another big question: How much will $ARB be worth? For me and many others, the answer could mean the difference between an extra bubble tea purchase this week and finally upgrading my 2017 laptop. We don’t know, but it’s fun to dream, isn’t it? For those interested in putting some research behind pure hope, check out this thread on ARB price prediction. I’m manifesting that beautiful price as we speak.
But regardless of price, we should be stoked. Arbitrum is decentralizing via token airdrop AND is using on-chain, self-executing governance. Now that’s a real DAO if I’ve ever seen one. This could prove an important signal to other L2s—the more the merrier in on-chain DAOland.
⌛️ On-chain Proposals
On-chain DAOs are decentralized autonomous organizations that operate entirely on the blockchain, using smart contracts and other blockchain-based technologies for its operations and decision-making processes. Tally believes that true DAOs operate on-chain.
Code4rena
C4IP-21: Code4rena Treasury Diversification
Summary: Crypto investment firm Paradigm to join the C4 DAO with $6M (as working capital) in exchange for 15% of the total supply of $ARENA tokens. Paradigm has been eyeing C4 since last May and it makes sense why they’d invest in smart contract security—the rest of their portfolio benefits, too.
Voting ends: March 24th
Summary: Lays out the minimum authorization for an administrator of the DAO to engage with service providers on behalf of the DAO (e.g., attorneys, tax preparers, etc.). Importantly, 4 DAO needs this proposal to authorize administrators to actually do the task that was passed by C4IP-19: Code4rena adoption of UNA legal entity structure. By defining clear guidelines, proposal also hopes to encourage community members to step forward as administrators over the next 45 days.
Voting ends: March 23rd
NounsDAO
Summary: $160k to make zk-pseudonyms available to every nouner and a platform for those pseudonyms to have threaded conversation. Based on the belief that there is value in allowing controversial opinions to surface, this proposal takes heyanoun.xyz closer to pseudonymity's ideal final form. Cool stuff and early to the anon convo.
Voting ends: March 26th
Showcase Nouns 3D-Printed Fashion Collection at NFT.NYC
Summary: Classic Nounsy proposal. Just over $51k to stand up an exhibition at NFT.NYC of a 5-look Nouns-inspired 3D printed fashion collection. Fresh out of NFT Paris hype, the aim is to expose Nouns to 8,000-10,000 NFT-curious Americans. Said looks are kinda cool—defo worth the check-out whether you vote or not.
Voting ends: March 27th
Public Nouns
$500 a month for a Public Nouns Twitter wizard
Summary: $500/month for a local social media expert to tweet daily from the (currently “extremely quiet”) Public Nouns’s twitter with a 6-month testing period. Claim to be high impact, low price.
Voting ends: March 23rd
📝 10 Things To Read or Listen To
Article: “Bailout Brink” by David Phelps
Article: “Solving The DAO Data Problem” by Trevor Normandi
Article: “The Oxcart Method” by mel.eth
Article: “14 Women and Women-Led Projects Building the Future of Web3” by Eric James Beyer
Article: “Utah Passes Innovative DAO Legislation” by Robert B. Lamb
Article: “Tokenized Real-World Assets Are Bringing New Yield Opportunities To DeFi” by Leeor Shimron
Article: “DAOs Are Consumer Products” by Seed Club
Article: “OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says AI will reshape society, acknowledges risks: 'A little bit scared of this'“ by Victor Ordonez, Taylor Dunn and Eric Noll
Podcast: “Toward a More Cooperative Web3 with Maxwell Kanter, Sarah Hubbard, and George Oates” from GreenPill
Podcast: Creating a Content Collective w/ Frisson and Tommy from Rehash
💫 DAO Talk: ldf || DT Interviews #35
🤭 Meme of the Week
ARBITRUM DAO IS LIVE ON TALLY!!! Exciting stuff—once ARB token claim period occurs next week, you’ll be able to delegate your votes, keep up-to-date on on-chain proposals, and watch successful proposals get executed immediately upon passage. That’s what we like to see. See ya next week!
p.s.- Took a wee trip to Sydney this week. Two big wins: 1) Saw some of Australia’s finest on the golf course (I’ll never get used to these things living outside of a zoo) and 2) didn’t text my ex who lives there. Also keen to see how the upcoming Nouns Deli Melbourne vote goes—I’d be all over that. Fun fact: What the rest of the world refers to as “the middle of nowhere,” Australians call “Woop Woop.” Example sentence: While this Nouns Deli may be somewhat near Melbourne, its distance from CBD makes it closer to Woop Woop.