A proposal on Balancer’s governance forum would shut down protocol operations and replace an earlier token buyback plan with a treasury redemption for BAL holders. Under the plan, holders would burn BAL in exchange for the DAO’s non-BAL treasury assets, distributed pro rata and in kind.

The proposal argues that Balancer’s managed treasury is now worth more than the token itself. At current prices cited in the post, the treasury holds at least $9 million in assets, while BAL’s market capitalization is about $7.7 million.

Buyback plan would be replaced

The forum post would cancel a buyback that token holders had approved in April and substitute a full winddown process. Instead of using treasury funds to repurchase BAL, the DAO would allow holders to redeem against treasury assets directly by burning their tokens.

The proposal excludes BAL already held in the treasury from the main distribution. Redeemers would receive the DAO’s other assets based on their share of circulating supply.

Redemption would happen in stages

The plan sets out two redemption rounds followed by a final sweep. The first round would open at the end of May 2027 and remain open for six months, closing in November 2027. During that period, holders could burn BAL and receive their portion of treasury assets, while a claim contract would record which addresses redeemed and how much.

A second distribution would take place within two months of the first round’s close, at the end of January 2028. That round would be sent only to addresses that participated in round one and would include any unspent winddown funds and unclaimed shares. Addresses that do not redeem in the first round would receive nothing in the second.

A final sweep is scheduled for six months later, at the end of July 2028, to distribute any remaining assets.

Special handling for locked positions

Treasury shares would be calculated against circulating supply. Under the proposal, veBAL locks would unlock into 80/20 BAL/WETH pool tokens, which holders would then exit to BAL before redeeming.

Positions held through auraBAL and sdBAL would need to unwind before the first round closes or they would forfeit their claims. The proposal names tetuBAL as the only exception because it is an immutable permalock that never converts. In that case, holders of record at the block of the proposal post would receive treasury BAL equal to half the measured amount.

Operational shutdown and governance vote

A Snapshot vote is scheduled for Sept. 25 through Sept. 29, with quorum set at 5 million BAL. The proposal asks for a $400,000 winddown budget: $150,000 for the period from Nov. 1 to May 2027, $30,000 from then until the final sweep, and a $220,000 reserve to be used only if needed.

If approved, pools that can be paused would be paused on Oct. 30 and shifted to withdrawals only, with recovery mode turned on where needed to keep exits available. Pools that cannot be paused would continue running, with protocol fees reduced to zero where possible. The frontend, routing systems, and communications would treat the protocol as discontinued from that date, and bug bounty coverage would end the same day.

Contributors were given two months’ notice starting Aug. 27 and running through Oct. 31. From Nov. 1, the remaining infrastructure would be reduced to a withdrawal interface, subgraph coverage, and documentation, kept live through veBAL unlocking and both treasury distribution rounds.

What the proposal says comes next

The post also calls for admin permissions, multisig roles, and the Emergency subDAO to be revoked or transferred, with treasury and distribution controls retired last. It describes the intended end state as a protocol that no longer depends on Balancer contributors or DAO-controlled privileged roles.

The next confirmed step is the Snapshot vote later this month. If token holders approve the measure, the winddown would begin in late October and the first redemption window would not open until May 2027.

Source: thedefiant.io