Solana's Crypto-Governance Hub Realms Under New Management

Solana's Crypto-Governance Hub Realms Under New Management

Solana's crypto-governance platform, Realms, is now under new management, spinning out of Solana Labs with a renewed focus on profitability. The new leadership, called "Realms Today Trust," aims to turn Realms into a sustainable business by introducing revenue-generating services while keeping essential tools for the community free of charge.

From Community Hub to Business Model

Realms has long served as the go-to governance hub for decentralized applications built on Solana. It provides tools for voting, decision-making, and treasury management for dozens of decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs). Under the new management, led by Dean Pappas and three others, Realms aims to move beyond its "public goods" roots to develop services that generate profit.

Key Services and Future Plans

While Realms' core governance tools will remain free, new paid services are being introduced. These include:

  • Crypto-Advisory Services: Helping DAOs set up their governance structures.
  • Incorporation Advisory: Assisting DAOs in creating legal structures and bank accounts.
  • Crypto-Treasury Credit Card: Allowing DAOs to spend their crypto reserves more easily.

These new offerings are aimed at capturing some of the $1.5 billion in crypto assets held by DAOs using Realms' infrastructure. Additionally, Realms plans to grant $200,000 to Solana DAOs to support emerging projects, though the source of this funding remains undisclosed.

New Ownership Structure

This transition isn't the first time a component of the Solana ecosystem has moved out from under Solana Labs. Metaplex, the entity behind Solana's NFT technology, similarly spun out to operate independently. According to Pappas, this approach aligns with the ethos of Solana Labs: once a project reaches a certain level of maturity, it's ready to stand on its own.

Realms is now legally owned by Sebastian Bor, a DAO engineer at Solana Labs, as indicated by U.K. business records from late 2023. The newly formed company, Realms Today LTD, added Dean Pappas and Jose Neif Jury from BCB Group as directors. However, Pappas declined to comment on whether Bor purchased Realms from Solana Labs.

Expanding the Platform

Currently, Realms employs 12 full-time staff, with plans to grow further. The team is working on developing new frontends for tokenized governance, moving away from the "one size fits all" approach that has defined the platform so far. Changes are also expected in Solana's governance standards for SPL tokens, with Realms planning to fork the existing open-source codebase as a step toward new developments.