Proposal for Comprehensive Expense Optimization and NEST/stETH Buyback Parameter Restructuring

I am putting forward a comprehensive proposal for community discussion and subsequent Snapshot voting. The goal is to aggressively optimize the DAO’s operational expenditures and realign our token support mechanisms with current market realities.

1. Independent Financial Audit Proposal: Commission a full, external financial audit of all Lido DAO expenses and grant distributions for the 2025–2026 fiscal periods.Execution: Engage an independent, reputable Web3 auditing firm to identify inefficiencies, redundant outlays, and hidden costs.

2. Operational Downsizing (Lido Labs) Proposal: Implement a 50% reduction in workforce across Lido Labs.

Rationale: In light of shifting market shares and intense competition in the institutional staking sector, our current burn rate is unsustainable. This restructuring will instantly lower our ongoing OpEx and safeguard the treasury.

3. NEST Buyback Framework Reform The current NEST smart-contract parameters are overly restrictive. We propose modifying the revenue triggers to reflect the new economic baseline:

Lower Revenue Trigger: Reduce the annualized protocol revenue threshold required to activate buybacks from $40M to $30M.

Dynamic ETH Target: Lowering the baseline revenue trigger to $30M (combined with the OpEx cuts from Sections 1 and 2) will naturally depress the calculated ETH price activation floor well below the current $2,730 mark.

Aggressive Accumulation: Direct 100% of all protocol revenue generated above the new $30M threshold exclusively toward LDO buybacks, shifting from the current 50% split

4. Transition to Dynamic stETH/LDO Buybacks Current Problem: The existing framework utilizes static, downside-targeted buyback orders, meaning capital sits idle waiting for deep market corrections that may not occur.

Proposal: Overhaul the stETH/LDO buyback parameters to operate on an active, market-responsive model rather than setting rigid price floors based on historical expectations. Capital dedicated to token support must be deployed dynamically based on moving averages or real-time volatility metrics.