MakerDAO Votes to Keep Sky Brand

MakerDAO has decided to maintain its rebrand amid criticism that it was losing industry recognition. Nearly 80% of voting shares supported keeping the “Sky” brand as the backend protocol name.

Only four entities contributed most of the vote share, with each holding around 20% while one large entity opposed the proposal. Maker, founded in 2014, initially voted for the Sky rebrand as part of founder Rune Christensen's long-term “Endgame” strategy aimed at revitalizing the protocol.

Despite broad support for the September rebranding, members have expressed concerns regarding the project's new direction, which includes the introduction of a suite of new stablecoins and the governance token SKY. Christensen has acknowledged these concerns, noting the ambitious scope of the proposed changes.

The Endgame proposal, introduced in late 2022, aims to make Maker more competitive. As part of the Sky rebrand, DAO members approved a token exchange, allowing DAI holders to trade for the new stablecoin Sky Dollar (USDS) at a 1:1 ratio, and MKR holders to swap for SKY at a 1:24,000 ratio. Though there are no plans to permanently retire DAI and MKR, USDS has quickly become the third-largest stablecoin, surpassing DAI.

Framework Ventures founder Vance Spencer highlighted that the Sky brand has yet to properly launch, lacking support on major exchanges. He remains optimistic, noting that Sky plans to introduce new stablecoins, integrate with Aave, and focus on asset tokenization, among other developments. He believes product innovation and growth are key moving forward, questioning whether resistance to the Sky brand is tied to market performance rather than brand equity.

In summary, the DAI token retains significant brand value as MakerDAO navigates its ambitious redesign under the Sky brand.