Funding and Mandating an Independent Web3 Financial Audit & R&D Expenditures

Proposals
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1. Executive Summary

Following the community proposal (https://research.lido.fi/t/mandating-a-2-year-financial-audit-demand-for-product-r-d-and-payroll-transparency/) published on the Lido Governance Forum on October 13, 2026, the Core Team and Finance Workgroup were issued a 14-day proposal to deliver an itemized financial report for the 2024–2026 operational period.

Due to the internal team’s failure to provide the requested financial reporting detailing the exact incubation costs, development expenditures, and the overall return on investment (ROI) of new initiatives, this Snapshot vote formally mandates the Lido DAO to bypass internal channels.

This proposal authorizes the allocation of treasury funds to contract an elite, independent Web3 forensic accounting and auditing firm to execute a comprehensive, external financial investigation.

2. Audit Scope & Deliverables

The selected external Web3 accounting firm (prioritizing Convoy Finance, Llama, or Fox Audit) will be contracted to deliver a public, itemized report covering the following areas:

• Financial Forensic of R&D & Incubation Costs: A complete on-chain and off-chain ledger of every dollar, LDO, and ETH allocated to the research, development, smart contract audits, and deployment of Lido Earn, stVaults, and Wisp,Lido Lend etc.

• Granular Payroll & Overhead Breakdown: A fully audited, anonymized breakdown of all contributor salaries, bonuses, retention packages, and contractor fees funded by the Lido Treasury over the past 24 months. This includes exact figures spent on marketing, administrative, and legal overhead for sub-products.

• Product Performance & Revenue Review: An independent financial review of the historical on-chain revenue generated by these products versus their upfront deployment costs to evaluate real economic performance.

3. Financial Allocation & Execution Mandate

To ensure maximum financial safety, eliminate conflicts of interest, and guarantee execution, the following procurement rules apply:

• Budget and Cost-Efficiency: To ensure competitive pricing, this proposal authorizes a target budget of up to $150,000 USD, with a hard maximum cap of $400,000 USD (payable in USDC, USDT, or ETH equivalent) to guarantee that a full, unrestricted audit can be completed by top-tier firms.

• Fund Custody: No funds shall be moved or disbursed to any internal party or unverified wallet upon the passing of this vote. The approved budget will remain securely within the Lido Treasury (Aragon Agent) until a formal service agreement (SOW) is negotiated.

• Independent Procurement Mandate (Steakhouse Financial): @steakhouse Financial is formally appointed by the DAO to act as the sole independent negotiator. Steakhouse Financial will collect bids from the designated pool (Convoy/Llama/Fox), evaluate their methodologies, ensure cost-optimization, and select the final execution partner. And announce the selection results, timelines, and price in the relevant forum thread.

• Direct-to-Auditor Payment (TMC): Upon final vendor selection by Steakhouse Financial, the Treasury Management Committee (TMC) is authorized to execute the transaction directly from the Treasury to the verified corporate wallet of the selected auditing firm (e.g., 50% upfront, 50% upon public delivery of the final report).

4. Implementation Timeline & Cooperation

• Procurement Phase (Days 1–7): Steakhouse Financial will conduct negotiations and finalize the contract within 7 days of this vote passing.

• Audit Execution Phase (Days 8–68): The contracted firm will be given exactly 60 calendar days to complete the investigation and post the unedited final report directly to the Lido Governance Forum.

• Operational Alignment: Lido Labs leaderships along with the Finance Workgroup, will provide the selected external auditors with the necessary operational data, internal ledgers, and technical documentation required to complete the report in accordance with this approved DAO mandate.

5. Pre-Voting Review & Feedback Period

To ensure maximum consensus and allow all ecosystem participants to voice their perspectives, this proposal will remain open for community discussion on the Lido Governance Forum for exactly 10 calendar days prior to the activation of the official Snapshot vote.

* During this 10-day window, delegates and community members are encouraged to submit feedback, request clarifications, or suggest structural amendments.

* Constructive changes supported by the community consensus will be integrated into the final text before voting begins.

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Before any questions about the price arise, let me share a quick thought: this cost amounts ($150 000 - $400 000) just 0.4–1% of the team’s total annual expenditure.

In my view, if a team can afford to build products that operate at a loss, develop buyback mechanisms that don’t actually work, or cover losses for other projects following a hack, then allocating 1% of their budget shouldn’t be an excessive burden.

Team are constantly told about transparency, yet there is no sign of it in the reports.

In its first 1–3 years, any business typically operates at a loss or breaks even; in subsequent years, it begins to generate profit—with that profit growing over time. In the case of Lido, however—after nearly six years of operation—we see only expenses amounting to $40 million per year. That seems rather strange, doesn’t it?

For this reason, a vote will be initiated on November 5, 2026.

I ask all delegates to vote HONESTLY.

If the audit reveals any questionable expenditures, we will look into them. If everything is above board, it will further demonstrate the project’s transparency to the market and the public—and it might even highlight additional expenses that could be cut to free up capital.

LDO is not a tool for infinite grants; it is a governance token that must accrue value. If the R&D doesn’t generate ROI for the DAO, the spendings must be reviewed immediately.

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