Balancer Labs Co-Founders: Balancer Labs to Sunset Gradually, Core Team to Join Balancer OpCo

March 24 — Balancer Labs co-founder Fernando Martinelli announced in a community post that he will gradually wind down the firm. The entity, which originally incubated the Balancer protocol, has become a drag on the protocol’s development amid ongoing legal risks tied to the November 2025 v2 exploit and a lack of revenue streams. Core team members will join Balancer OpCo (subject to a governance vote). Martinelli noted the protocol’s total fee revenue over the past three months has hit an annualized rate of over $1 million, and it remains operationally viable. Key issues stem from its tokenomics and high cost structure. Proposed measures include: - Halting BAL emissions entirely - Terminating the veBAL model - Directing 100% of protocol fees to the DAO treasury - Cutting the V3 protocol fee split to 25% to attract organic liquidity - Establishing a buyback mechanism for BAL holders to exit positions smoothly - Focusing on core products (reCLAMM, LBP, stablecoin/LST pools, weighted pools) and a handful of EVM chains Following the wind-down, Martinelli will no longer hold a formal role with the protocol but is open to advising in a voluntary capacity.