Balancer plans to shut down Balancer Labs; the agreement will be operated under a DAO, foundation, and service provider model.

PANews reported on March 24 that Balancer co-founder Fernando Martinelli announced the gradual closure of Balancer Labs due to a lack of revenue and ongoing legal risks stemming from the November 2025 v2 vulnerability exploit. The core team members are planned to be absorbed by Balancer OpCo, and the relevant proposal will be submitted to governance for a vote. Martinelli stated that the Balancer protocol has evolved to the point where it no longer requires a traditional corporate entity; in the future, the protocol will operate through a DAO, foundation, and service provider model. While the protocol itself continues to generate actual revenue, with annualized total fees exceeding $1 million in the past three months, the problem lies in the unsustainable economic model and excessively heavy cost structure surrounding the protocol.

Martinelli supports the proposed token economic restructuring plan and its accompanying operational BIP, including reducing BAL emissions to zero, ending the veBAL mechanism, routing 100% of protocol fees to the DAO treasury, repurchasing BAL at a fair price to provide exit liquidity for holders, and focusing on core product lines such as reCLAMM, LBP, and stablecoin/LST pools. Martinelli himself will no longer maintain a formal relationship with the protocol but is willing to provide support as an advisor.