Azuki DAO Community Initiates Snapshot Proposal Amid Misconduct Allegations

The Azuki DAO community, associated with the anime-inspired NFT collection, has launched a Snapshot proposal to hold the project’s founder accountable for alleged misconduct.

The accusations arose following the recent release of Azuki’s latest collection, Elementals. Some buyers expressed frustration over its striking resemblance to the original set of Azuki profile pictures (PFPs) sold in early 2022.

Elementals could only be minted by holders of the original Azukis and a side-project called BEANZ. The new NFTs, also PFPs, sold out within 15 minutes, raising 20,000 ETH ($39.4 million) for Chiru Labs, the LA-based startup behind the NFTs. The mint price was set at 2 ETH ($3,900), while the floor price for the original Azukis currently stands at 6.3 ETH ($12,400).

A Snapshot proposal has been filed by community members, claiming that they have received nothing more than a similar profile picture to the original Azuki holders, calling the team’s promises “empty” and accusing them of scamming investors.

If the proposal is passed, it will request legal action against the pseudonymous founder of Azuki, Zagabond, for alleged misconduct in multiple projects, without providing specific details about those projects. The proposal also seeks a refund of the sale proceeds, which would be directed towards promoting the growth of the project and funding initial research for the lawsuit.

Last week, the Azuki team addressed the backlash on social media, acknowledging that they had “missed the mark” and admitting that the minting process was chaotic and that the PFPs felt similar and dilutive to the original Azuki collection.

Since the sale, the floor price for Elementals has plummeted nearly 70% to 0.63 ETH ($1,240) on OpenSea.

According to Simon Kertonegoro, CEO of NFT gaming studio MyMetaverse, it is crucial for projects like Azuki to create tangible products that can generate revenue from outside markets. He emphasized the need for crypto and NFT projects to adopt real business models and serve the wider market. Attempts to contact Zagabond for comment went unanswered, and Azuki community members have yet to respond to inquiries.

As of now, the Snapshot proposal shows that 88% of voters are in favor of hiring a lawyer to address the situation.