‘A Different Era’: Bored Ape Creator Yuga Labs Wants to Kill the ApeCoin DAO

The creator of the Bored Ape Yacht Club wants to take control of ApeCoin, after years of distancing itself from the Ethereum token created for its ecosystem.

In a new ApeCoin Improvement Proposal idea, Yuga Labs CEO and co-founder Greg Solano (aka Garga) outlined potential plans to disband the ApeCoin DAO, eliminating all governance rights for APE token holders in the process.

The idea, which started gaining attention on social media earlier this week, would transition all assets and responsibilities of the DAO to a new entity created by Yuga Labs, called ApeCo. 

“ApeCoin DAO was a bold experiment, but one born of a different era. What started with promise has devolved into sluggish, noisy, and often unserious governance theater,” wrote Solano in his post on the ApeCoin forums. “Too many resources have gone to vanity proposals and low-impact initiatives. That stops now.”

The “bold experiment” came to life in 2022 at the peak of the Bored Ape frenzy, acting as the decentralized entity responsible for launching ApeCoin (APE) on the Ethereum blockchain—not Yuga Labs itself. The ApeCoin DAO was treated as an independent entity, despite being closely aligned with Yuga and the Bored Ape ecosystem.

But over time and as the token price has fallen substantially, the DAO has faced criticism for funding proposals that didn’t add value to the ApeCoin ecosystem or Bored Ape Yacht Club brand.

If the drafted plan is ultimately passed, then the ApeCoin DAO would be fully dissolved and all prior ApeCoin Improvement Proposals (AIPs) would be nullified, with exception given to those that have executed AIP contracts. Additionally, it would terminate all working groups, delegated authorities, elections, and the ApeCoin forum.

“The AIP creates a new entity, ApeCo, whose mission will be to supercharge the APE ecosystem by supporting high-quality builders and reinforcing three core pillars: ApeChain, Bored Ape Yacht Club, and Otherside,” Solano posted on X. 

Per the proposal, ApeCo would be granted all assets held by the DAO or ApeCoin Foundation, only after the new entity funds the ApeCoin staking contract and the DAO infrastructure is disabled. 

According to Solano, this would create notable benefits to the ApeCoin ecosystem, including “decisive clarity” and “strategic focus”—key themes that have been highlighted since Solano was reinstated as Yuga Labs CEO early last year and the firm began parting ways with IP it picked up since its explosive growth started in 2021.

“Since returning as CEO, everything I’ve worked on has aimed at one thing: getting back to the spirit and velocity of year one, when Gordon Goner [Wylie Aronow] and I were building Yuga from scratch,” he posted on X. “We’ve made huge progress. But the biggest unlock would be in getting ApeCoin rowing in the right direction.”

Just last week, Yuga Labs parted ways with the IP for Ethereum NFT collection Moonbirds that it acquired in February 2024. Earlier this year, it also sold the IP rights to the CryptoPunks and Meebits collections it acquired from Larva Labs in 2022. 

The IP shedding, plus the spinout of its HV-MTL game to Faraway in early 2024, has the Bored Ape creator once more focused on its core collection, along with the ApeChain network and long-in-the-works Otherside metaverse game.

“We’re building the best chain in crypto and expanding the most iconic brand in NFTs. ApeCoin should be the economic engine for that future,” Solano wrote in his conclusion.  

Early reception to the idea has been broadly positive, with community members and other Web3 builders speaking out in support. 

Based on existing ApeCoin DAO governance rules, the idea will need to be reviewed by the ApeCoin DAO Special Council before it can be sent to a vote. Voting periods open on the first and third Thursday of every month at 9:00pm ET. 

A representative for Yuga Labs did not immediately respond to Decrypt’s request for comment. 

ApeCoin, the native token of the Bored Ape Yacht Club ecosystem and the governance token for the ApeCoin DAO, is down more than 7% in the last 24 hours to $0.66. The token is more than 97% off its April 2022 all-time high of $26.70

Edited by Andrew Hayward