UNIfication: Uniswap’s Next Era

Today, alongside Uniswap founder Hayden Adams, we’re excited to make a joint governance proposal that turns on protocol fees and aligns incentives across the Uniswap ecosystem. We believe this proposal positions the Uniswap Protocol to win as the default decentralized exchange for tokenized value.

In August 2022, we proposed the creation of the Uniswap Foundation with a simple goal in mind: to support you.

The Uniswap Protocol had already changed the world, but its ecosystem needed stewardship. The governance process was difficult to navigate, and developer infrastructure was still emerging. At the same time, the crypto industry was operating under a challenging regulatory environment.

Against this backdrop, we saw the opportunity to create a new organization that would be able to collaborate directly and openly with ecosystem stakeholders. We created the Foundation to promote DeFi by stewarding the Uniswap community and supporting the industry’s best builders, delegates, researchers, organizers, academics, analysts, and more.

And since its establishment, we’re proud of what we’ve achieved:

• Funding ecosystem growth. Committed $40M+ in grants to developers, researchers, and contributors: onboarding 180+ Unichain teams and 1.5K+ hook developers from 60+ countries to Uniswap.
• Accelerating ecosystem innovation. Programs like the Uniswap Hook Incubator and Hook Design Lab helped drive 20K+ hook initializations and $9.4B in hook volume since v4’s launch. Foundation-supported teams found traction, with EulerSwap ($4.7B volume), Aegis ($1B volume), and Doppler’s Zora integration (4M hooked pools) leading the way.
• Supporting Unichain and v4 adoption. Since February, incentive programs have helped Unichain generate $70B+ in DEX volume, and v4 has passed $230B cumulative volume.
• Advancing critical DeFi research. ​​Through research grants, fellowships, and the launch of TLDR, a leading DeFi research conference with more than 400 global participants, the UF has catalyzed groundbreaking work on AMM design, MEV dynamics, restaking, and more.
• Empowering Uniswap Governance. Paved the way for governance legitimacy by establishing a DUNA for Uniswap Governance, advancing the development of Conditional Funding Markets, and supporting delegates through initiatives like GovSwap.
• Strengthened ecosystem security. Launched the Uniswap Foundation Security Fund to support 20+ teams with audits and expert guidance from 30+ vetted providers, while driving v4 audits, governance contract upgrades, and community bug bounties.

While the past few years have brought real progress, we also recognize that the world in which we operate has changed in meaningful ways since our founding. Evolving regulatory clarity in the US, alongside the adoption of the DUNI, have prepared the Uniswap community for its next era. That’s why, together with Uniswap Labs, we’re proposing a long-term model for the Uniswap ecosystem: one where protocol usage drives UNI burn and one aligned team focuses on protocol development and growth.

Importantly, this proposal will allow us to pursue our goals, and support our community, with more resources and momentum. It enables our ecosystem to operate on a stronger foundation, with more clarity, and a renewed sense of purpose for what we can achieve.

In this post, we wanted to speak directly to our community on what they can expect from the Uniswap Foundation and our work if the proposal today passes.

What’s Changing

Our governance proposal outlines a number of changes designed to implement updates to protocol governance and token parameters, including the activation of certain protocol-level fee mechanisms and a reduction in total UNI supply, and align the Uniswap Labs interface and developer API to better support protocol growth. The proposal also introduces a Uniswap Growth Budget to fund protocol and ecosystem development under a Service Provider Agreement.

The majority of the Uniswap Foundation team and its ongoing initiatives are expected to transition to Uniswap Labs, with a lean team remaining at the Foundation to manage continued grants administration. The Foundation will deploy the remaining ~$100 million grants budget consistent with its mission, after which it will close operations.

And What’s Not Changing

Our mission, and our work to achieve that mission. This remains the same: to support protocol growth, empower DeFi builders, and strengthen governance. Our ecosystem teams will continue to work towards achieving these goals within Uniswap Labs.

The Uniswap Foundation will support all existing grant commitments, and sustain future ecosystem funding; ensuring that the momentum across Uniswap’s builder community can continue to grow.

Thank you

Earlier this year, the Uniswap Protocol became the first DEX to surpass $3 trillion in cumulative volume: a testament to what this community has built together. We couldn’t have gotten to where we are today without you – your support, your participation, your commitment to DeFi. We are excited to enter this next era alongside you.

Read the full proposal here.

This post describes proposed governance and protocol updates for informational purposes only, and should not be interpreted as financial, investment, or legal advice.