---
type: decision
entity_type: decision_market
name: "MetaDAO: Burn 99.3% of META in Treasury"
domain: internet-finance
status: passed
tracked_by: rio
created: 2026-03-11
last_updated: 2026-03-11
parent_entity: "[[metadao]]"
platform: "futardio"
proposer: "doctor.sol & rar3"
proposal_url: "https://v1.metadao.fi/metadao/trade/ELwCkHt1U9VBpUFJ7qGoVMatEwLSr1HYj9q9t8JQ1NcU"
proposal_date: 2024-03-03
resolution_date: 2024-03-08
category: treasury
summary: "Burn ~979,000 of 982,464 treasury-held META tokens to reduce FDV and attract investors"
tags: ["futarchy", "tokenomics", "treasury-management", "meta-token"]
---

# MetaDAO: Burn 99.3% of META in Treasury

## Summary
Proposal to burn approximately 99.3% of treasury-held META tokens (~979,000 of 982,464) to significantly reduce the Fully Diluted Valuation. Passed on Autocrat v0.1. The high FDV was perceived as discouraging investors and limiting participation in the futarchy experiment. Post-burn treasury: ~4,500 META valued at ~$4M plus ~$2M in META-USDC LP at the time ($880/META). Total META supply after burn: ~20,885.

## Market Data
- **Outcome:** Passed (2024-03-08)
- **Autocrat version:** 0.1
- **Key participants:** doctor.sol & rar3 (authors), Proph3t (executor)

## Significance
One of the most consequential early MetaDAO governance decisions. The burn fundamentally changed MetaDAO's token economics — eliminating the treasury's ability to pay in META and forcing future operations to use USDC or market-purchase META. This created a natural scarcity signal but also meant the DAO would eventually need mintable tokens (which the proposal explicitly noted as a future possibility). The burn set the stage for the later token split and elastic supply debates.

The proposal also reveals early futarchy dynamics: community members (not founders) proposed a radical tokenomics change, and the market approved it. This is a concrete example of futarchy enabling non-founder governance proposals with material treasury impact.

## Relationship to KB
- [[metadao]] — governance decision, treasury management
- [[futarchy enables trustless joint ownership by forcing dissenters to be bought out through pass markets]] — demonstrates market-governed treasury decisions
- [[ownership coin treasuries should be actively managed through buybacks and token sales as continuous capital calibration not treated as static war chests]] — burn as extreme active management
- [[futarchy-daos-require-mintable-governance-tokens-because-fixed-supply-treasuries-exhaust-without-issuance-authority-forcing-disruptive-token-architecture-migrations]] — this burn directly created the conditions that made mintable tokens necessary

---

Relevant Entities:
- [[metadao]] — parent organization
- [[proph3t]] — executor

Topics:
- [[internet finance and decision markets]]

## Full Proposal Text

*Source: futard.io, tabled 2024-03-03*

#### Authors
doctor.sol & rar3

### Overview
Burn ~99.3% `979,000` of treasury-held META tokens to significantly reduce the FDV, with the goal of making META more appealing to investors and enhancing community engagement.

### Background
The META DAO is currently perceived to have a **high Fully Diluted Valuation (FDV)** due to the substantial amount of META tokens in the treasury, approximately `985,000 tokens`. This high FDV often **discourages potential investors and participants** from engaging with META, as they may perceive the investment as less attractive right from the start.

### Issue at Hand
The primary concern is that the high FDV and treasury leads to the following problems:

1. **It encourages the use of META for expenses.**
2. **It lowers the attractiveness of META as an investment opportunity** at face value.
3. **It reduces the number of individuals willing to participate** in this futuarchy experiment.

While a high FDV can deter less informed community members, which has its benefits, it also potentially wards off highly valuable community members who could contribute positively.

#### Examples
- https://imgur.com/a/KHMjJqo
- https://imgur.com/a/3DH2jcO

### Proposed Solution
We propose **burning approximately ~99.3%** of the META tokens -`99,000 tokens` - currently held in the DAO's treasury. This action is aimed at achieving the following outcomes:

- **Elimination of Treasury META Payments**: Reduces the propensity to utilize $META from the treasury for proposal payments, promoting a healthier economic framework.
- **Market-Based Token Acquisition**: Future requirements for $META tokens will necessitate market purchases, fostering demand and enhancing token value.
- **Prioritization of $USDC and Revenue**: Shifting towards $USDC payments and focusing on revenue generation marks a move towards financial sustainability and robustness.
- **Confidence Boost in META**: By significantly reducing the supply of META tokens, we signal a strong commitment to the token's value, **potentially leading to increased interest and participation in prop 10 execution.**
- **Attracting a Broader Community**: Lowering the FDV makes META more attractive at face value, inviting a wider range of participants, including those who conduct thorough research and those attracted by the token's perceived tokenomics.

### Rundown of Numbers:
- **Current Treasury:** `982,464 META tokens`
- **After Burning:** `3,464 META tokens`
- **Post-Proposition 10:** An expected `1,000 META tokens` should be added back from multisig after prop 10, ranging anywhere from `0 to 3,000 META`.
- **Final Treasury:** After burning, the treasury would have around `4,500 META`, valued at `$4 million`, plus `$2 million in META-USDC LP` at todays price `$880 / META`.
- **Total META supply:** `20,885`

#### Note
Adopting this proposal does **not permanently cap our token supply.** The community is currently discussing the possibility of transitioning to a **mintable token model**, which would provide the flexibility to issue more tokens if the need arises.
