MakerDAO: The Endgame is Where Small Advantages Lead to Checkmates

Over the years, MakerDAO has expanded to become one of the most significant DeFi protocols. As the protocol's influence grew, scope creep ensued, which led to an identity crisis and unmanageable governance complexities ping-ponging between decentralized expansion and growth through a centralized, more traditional corporate structure. Today, the protocol has, to a certain extent, made a compromise between the two options by accelerating the onboarding of real-world assets (“RWAs”), becoming MakerDAO’s primary revenue source, while introducing Endgame—a plan to create the largest stablecoin project through an autonomous SubDAO economy.

The MKR price has rebounded from January 2023 lows of ~$500, likely due to accelerating fees derived from RWAs, and since the beginning of June, has even outperformed ETH. Although the protocol’s stablecoin market share has steadily trended downward to ~3.3% since the end of 2021, interest around MakerDAO is on the rise. Upcoming catalysts include a heightened RWA narrative, growing revenue through increased and more efficient collateral allocation, a high-growth vertical with proven product-market fit, and a TradFi-friendly business model. Accordingly, the MKR price has spiked by ~55% in the past 30 days, trading at ~$1,280 as of July 31. However, the project also faces possible headwinds, comprising an interest rate reversion, high U.S. regulatory risk, and increasing competition within the stablecoin vertical.

Endgame

A vast focus of Endgame is to grow MakerDAO’s presence within the stablecoin vertical and greatly simplify the governance process. The protocol’s currently convoluted governance structure comprises over 100 improvement proposals, several of which are abandoned and inconsistent, with essential information spread out across several sources. By introducing Endgame, the project looks to create clarity and stronger value accrual to its governance token.

Endgame is a five-phased plan containing a revamped brand, a new stablecoin and governance token, a proprietary blockchain, and six new SubDAOs, each with their respective native tokens. Let us examine each phase separately.

Phase 1: Beta Launch