Optimism foundation recently divested 116 million OP tokens worth $157 million in a private and planned sale, citing ‘treasury management purposes’. Although planned, this transaction has reignited ongoing debates about the true essence of decentralization in the crypto space.
The sale of the tokens was conducted privately and was attended by seven undisclosed buyers. According to DefiLlama data, the tokens were withdrawn from an unallocated portion of Optimism’s treasury. Moreover, this section is still filled with approximately $1.25 billion.
Buyers can transfer their newly acquired tokens to third parties, enabling them to participate in blockchain governance. This feature has sparked curiosity given its potential to disrupt power dynamics within the Optimism ecosystem.
Financials and Market Reaction
Despite the successful sale, OP tokens could not reach the bullish phase. The current trading price is $1.35 and has decreased by 2.19% in the last 24 hours. In addition, the circulating supply of OP tokens is 18.59%. This raises questions about the scarcity and demand of these tokens.
Earlier this week, Optimism also released its third community airdrop. Additionally, it distributed 19.4 million tokens among more than 31,000 users. However, another 570 million tokens have been reserved for future airdrops. Added another layer of complexity to OP’s tokenomics.
token sale crypto- It didn’t go well for everyone in his community. A tweet by crypto influencer Hsaka criticized the process, highlighting the lack of a community vote on the decision to sell the tokens. “In a truly decentralized world, this would be a vote to sell,” Hsaka tweeted threw. Moreover, he shared a hypothetical voting scenario showing how the community could block the sale.
In a true decentralized world, there would have been a vote for this sale
Here’s how it would have gone:
▓▓░░░░░░ 11% – Yes
▓▓▓▓▓▓░░ 89% – No*minutes before the vote ends, the seven entities vote*
▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ 99% – Yes
░░░░░░░░░ 1% – No— Hsaka (@HsakaTrades) September 20, 2023
Another Twitter user pointed out that the tokens were sold to seven anonymous investment funds with a two-year lock-up period, raising further questions about the transparency and decision-making process within the Optimism community.
Optimism Foundation made a lot of money from the massive token sale. But it also upset some people who care about shared decision-making. In a world where everyone should have a say, ignoring this is against the principles of decentralization.